Ghosts of the past

I usually have three or four short adventures prepared at any one time in case the players finish an adventure early in our game session. I can then drop in a hook to a short adventure. During this session, I ran two short adventures back-to-back. "Malyn Missing" was a quick adventure I wrote to make use of the Darkvale Abbey map from Heroic Maps. The second adventure is a re-written Ghosts in the Graveyard 5e adventure written by William Fischer for EN Word ENSider. The published adventure was written for 5th-level adventurers but it was easy enough to make it work for my much higher level campaign.

Session 155: Ghosts of the past

Lakima (human magic-user), Eathwund (human fighter), Domago (human cleric NPC), Brovin (human thief NPC), August (human magic-user NPC), Aelshara (half-elven fighter/magic-user NPC).

Lakima, Eathwund, Domago, Brovin, August, and Aelshara have journeyed north from Edgerton on the flying ship Cloudstealer on the trail of the kidnapped mage Malyn. The trail has led to an abandoned monastery in the Northern Hills.

“It looks deserted,” Brovin says, surveying the abandoned monastery. A two-story square tower and a ruined one-story building are attached to a walled courtyard. The walls have crumbled to the ground in many places.

“Scout the courtyard,” Lakima says to Brovin.

The thief puts on his ring of invisibility and vanishes. A few minutes later he returns to tell them that the courtyard is full of rubble but no one is there. With a signal, the adventurers approach the fallen doors to the courtyard. They behold two statues standing to either side of the entrance. One is little more than a pile of rocks but the other, covered in vines, is intact and depicts a broad-shouldered man in an apron holding a smith’s hammer in his right hand.

“Domago,” Lakima asks.

“It looks like Saint Helm,” Domago replies, “Patron saint of blacksmiths and stone workers.”

“Why would the monastery have been abandoned,” Lakima asks.

“It looks like it was attacked and the monks likely were killed or quit the monastery after the attack,” Domago says, “This close to the mountains, attacks from humanoid tribes would not be unexpected.”

The group enters the courtyard and Brovin points out the door to the tower.

“Check it out, Brovin,” Lakima says.

The thief moves over to the door and listens. He can see a wooden beam barring the door shut from the outside. Inside he hears a low, curious growl.

“I can hear something growling like a bear!”

“Do we check it out?” Lakima asks.

Aelshara nods that they should while Eathwund just shrugs his shoulders.

Moving to the door Eathwund grabs the bar and swings it up. The door flies open in his face. A fierce owlbear stands in the doorway and rushes toward Eathwund. Eathwund prepared for a possible bear attack is ready and drops the owlbear with a stab of his sword into its chest.

“Stand back,” Lakima yells and casts charm monster on the second owlbear. But the spell fails.

Eathwund ignores the request from Lakima seeing a second owlbear is already leaping toward him. This time Aelshara also strikes the bear with her sword and the two warriors kill the second owlbear which collapses on the corpse of the first.

“Did you get them all?” Brovin calls nervously.

Without answering Eathwund and Aelshara climb over the dead owlbears and into the tower room. Lakima impatiently tells Brovin to get in the chamber and check for treasure. A quick search reveals nothing but long-wasted provisions. A broken stair leads partway to the roof. The three climb back over the dead animals and out into the courtyard.

“Hey there is a ladder to the roof over here,” Brovin says pointing at a wood ladder just outside the courtyard wall.

“And it looks new.”

At the urging of Lakima, Brovin climbs up the ladder to the roof. A few minutes later he returns telling everyone that the roof is empty but that there is a wagon and a mule just outside the courtyard. Brovin is sent to check the wagon but finds only an empty wood crate inside it. The mule grazes peacefully on some grass nearby. Brovin returns and tells everyone.

“Well, someone is here,” Lakima says.

The group goes to the most intact building where two open doors lead to a hallway.

“I saw something move,” Brovin whispers.

“Eathwund, Aelshara, move to the front,” Lakima says.

Just then two men yelling war cries come charging toward the open doors to attack Eathwund and Lakima. Lakima casts his Protector spell and a suit of armor appears between him and the attackers. Eathwund defends himself from one attacker while the protector fights the other. Domago and Aelshara move to help but are stopped by a sudden shout.

“Behind us!” Brovin yells and points at two more bandits entering the courtyard behind them. Domago and Aelshara move quickly to block the two bandits.

Lakima casts a charm person spell on one of the bandits, a young woman.

“Stop, there is no need for this we are friends,” Lakima tells her.

The woman stops her charge and lowers her weapon looking about in confusion at Aelshara dueling with the other bandit.

“Ercan, stop!” the woman yells, “These are the guides sent for us!”

The man turns and looks at the woman in surprise.

“What! Are you stupid, they are the Black Dragon bastards from Edgerton!” he yells back.

The woman keeps trying to convince her friend to stop fighting, even grabbing his sword arm.

Meanwhile, Eathwund kills the youngest of the two bandits near him and the other bandit starts to slowly withdraw toward an open door. The protector swings ineffectively at him. Eathwund then steps inside his guard and cuts his throat open killing him.

“HOLD!” Domago yells and casts hold person on the bandit in the courtyard. The man stops moving paralyzed by the spell.

“I don’t understand, why did you kill them?” the woman asks.

“What is your name?” Lakima asks.

“Luna.”

“Luna, you know how the bosses get, we are here to take the prisoner and get rid of any weaklings.”

The bandit who gave her name as Luna is confused by the fight but agrees to take them to Malyn who she tells them is down in the cellar. The held bandit is tied up, gagged, and tossed into a broken horse stall next to the bones of a long-dead horse.

“This way, be careful of the mushrooms they are poisonous,” Luna says leading the adventurers to a stair descending down into the cellars of the monastery.

“Thanks,” Lakima says looking at the glistening, large black mushrooms that he had no intention of stepping anywhere nearby.

Luna descends the stairs first and calls out to those below.

“Our guides have arrived for the Pass of the Dead!”

Two men stand below in a cellar and look up in surprise. The room is lit by two torches in the walls burning blue flames. A large wood box lies on the floor, a door is open to the right, and directly ahead they see two prison cell doors.

“These are not the guides you fool,” one man yells while jumping out of a chair, “They are the Black Dra… aaahh,” he tries to finish but is cut off when Lakima shouts a single word at him. The man appears stunned and falls to the floor.

Black Choke Slavers

“I stunned him, get him,” Lakima yells at Eathwund who rushes the other man. The man is clad in dark robes but Eathwund quickly learns he is protected by chainmail under the robes. As Eathwund slashes the man he casts a spell at Eathwund. A beam of yellow light strikes Eathwund in the chest but does nothing. With a quick thrust, Eathwund shoves his sword halfway up the blade into the surprised man’s chest. He slides off the sword dead.

Aelshara runs to the open door and lets out a shout of anger raising her sword and striking another bandit. Lakima runs over to join her and sends the Protector into the melee as well. Then he casts charm person but it fails.

Seeing Lakima casting spells, the dark-skinned man says a quick prayer and a beam of light from his outstretched hand strikes Lakima. But again, nothing happens.

“You fool, I am the master of spells here!” Lakima shouts and casts disintegrate at the man but it also fails.

“Ha,” the man says, and avoiding the blows of the protector he steps back and aims another spell at Lakima. Lakima feels a brief wave of sickness come over him but realizing it is magic he fights it off.

Meanwhile, Aelshara takes the opportunity to stab the man in the side wounding him grievously. He staggers apparently dying and gets off one more spell aimed at Lakima but it also fails. He drops to the floor dead.

“Brovin, over here!” Eathwund yells, waving Brovin toward the cell door near him.

“Help! Eathwund get me out of here!” they hear.

Brovin deftly unlocks the door and they find a frantic Loric in a squalid cell. He thanks them profusely and tells them Malyn is in the next cell and is dying. Brovin also quickly picks the lock to the second cell and they find Malyn lying unconscious on the floor. His clothes are soaked in sweat. Domago runs to Malyn’s aid immediately.

“His heart is weak, and his blood flow is very faint,” Domago says, “I think that it is the effect of the geas, there is nothing I can do to save him.”

“We need to return him to his shop in Edgerton quickly,” Lakima says.

Lakima then notices Luna the bandit, confused and hesitantly sneaking back up the stairs.

“Wait, where are you going?”

“Something is not right here,” she says, “I don’t understand it but it's not right.”

“Have you not seen factions fight before?” Lakima asks.

“I guess,” Luna says.

“It is nothing more than that, we are taking over,” Lakima says.

“You want the Ghoul King’s bounty?”

Lakima talks to Luna and learns that the group of bandits are members of the Black Choke slavers. They sell human slaves to the Ghoul King in the north. This group of slavers decided to collect on a reward offered for Malyn, to be brought alive to Ghoul Keep. Luna continues to be suspicious of what is happening but the power of the charm on her is enough to keep her compliant.

A talk with Loric reveals that the slavers were also asking about the Black Ring. They were uncertain which of the two was the real Malyn. Since Malyn claimed to be the apprentice and then soon became sick. Not knowing about the geas, neither Loric nor the slavers realized it had given Malyn away.

“Once they mentioned torture I would have told them anything I know,” Loric says.

Loric tells Lakima that life as Malyn’s apprentice may not be what he bargained for and Lakima suggests he join the Mages Guild of Edgerton.

“I might take you up on that,” Loric says.

The bandits are searched and hundreds of coins are found along with some jewels. Lakima tells Brovin to tie up the stunned bandit who Luna tells them is Onufrio. Eathwund lifts up Onufrio and carries him up to the courtyard.

“What about him,” Eathwund says shifting the bandit leader to his shoulder and pointing at the bandit they tied up and threw in a horse stall.

“He is just an underling,” Lakima says, “We do not need him.”

“There is a bounty of 250 gold for any Black Choke Slaver brought in alive,” Brovin says.

Lakima shrugs but Eathwund reaches down and easily hefts up a second bandit.

“Bounty,” Luna says, “I don’t understand, I thought you were slavers too?”

“Put this on,” Lakima says to Luna and he hands her the cursed helm of free action.

Once Luna puts on the helmet her questions are quelled.

It is an uneventful journey by flying ship back to Edgerton taking a day and a half. Once in Edgerton, Malyn is rushed over to his bed in the Apothecary. Abbot Marta takes charge of his well-being and promises to inform them of any change. Once in his bed, he asks for his ring and the green dragon statuette shows them how to open a secret compartment that holds the ring. Malyn takes the ring and falls unconscious. Lakima offers Loric a place in the Mages Guild with no tuition. He tells him there is one condition, he must honor the goddess of magic – Medamellara. Under this condition, Loric respectfully declines. He has pledged his soul to the Dark Lady. Changing that pledge would have dire consequences.

Back at the Manor, Lakima questions the leader of the slavers. The man answers their questions admitting to kidnapping Malyn for the bounty offered by the Ghoul King. He is unmoved by Lakima’s threats. They decide to turn him and his underling in to the town watch. They inform the watch that these are Black Choke slavers. The Watch captain checks the two bandits for the tell-tale choke tattoo of the slavers and finds it. He promises to send their reward once the slavers are questioned.

It is almost a week before they receive word that Malyn has recovered. Eathwund and Lakima go to visit him. Lakima takes the charmed Luna along. Malyn is grateful and a little surprised that they came to rescue him. 

“What will it cost me?”

“A favor,” Lakima says.

“I do not want to be beholden to you,” Malyn says, “I will reduce the price on the air elemental captures for your helms.” Lakima agrees.

“You need better protection,” Lakima tells Malyn.

“I had an excellent guardian but he is now trapped in here,” Malyn says tapping the magic mazestone on the counter.

“Perhaps you can use her,” Lakima says pointing at the charmed Luna.

Malyn is intrigued until he learns she is a charmed black choke slaver. He declines saying that she is charmed by Lakima, not him, and after having tried to claim his bounty he would not trust her not to try again.

The conversation turns to the bodyguard Malyn used to have been assigned by the temple of the Dark Lady. The cleric is trapped in the Mazestone. Lakima offers to free him. Malyn agrees to deliver the helms for no cost if he can free his bodyguard. Lakima casts a limited wish but it does not work.

“Nothing.”

“The mazestone is an artifact from the time of the Seven Cities,” Malyn says, “Even a wish spell might not work on it.”

When Lakima and Eathwund return to the manor they are told by Huntley that a man is waiting to see them in the mud room. “He was too dirty to let into the hall.”

They find Fendar waiting for them. He nervously asks for help. He has spotted a ghost walking the graveyard after dark. The ghost of a young woman.

“Perhaps if you did not steal for the dead, they would not be so restless,” Lakima says. But he does agree to help and asks Brovin and Eathwund to join him that night.

Lakima, Eathwund, and Brovin arrive at the graveyard outside Edgerton a few hours after sunset. They see a lantern light on the hill amongst the graves and the dark shape of a man digging a grave. Heading toward the light they see Fendar digging up a grave while a large dog circles nervously near him with its tail between its legs.

“Fendar, what are you doing,” Lakima says.

Fendar ignores them and the dog starts to whine. Eathwund walks up to Fendar just as he swings open a coffin revealing a recently buried man.

“It’s not here!” Fendar growls in a deep voice.

“What’s not here?”

“My cat, Oro?” Fendar says.

Fendar continues to speak strangely of his missing cat.

“He’s possessed, that’s not Fendar” Lakima says.

“Of course not, I am Arcos the ageless, sage of Edgerton,” Fendar says proudly. He then asks for their help in finding his cat. Eathwund notices that the grave next to the open one says “Arcos the scribe – 975”. Lakima uses the arrow of direction to locate the cat Oro and the arrow points back at the town of Edgerton.

“Will you find my cat?”

“We promise to find and return your cat,” Lakima says.

Fendar then collapses in a heap. A moment later his familiar voice returns as he questions what he is doing out in the graveyard. His dog stops whining and jumps up on him.

“Down Ripper, what's got into you,” Fendar says. Brushing himself off he gets up. Lakima explains what happened and questions what the open grave has to do with Arcos. Fendar has no idea. The grave is that of a merchant adventurer named Danforth. He had no connection to Arcos that he was aware. Fendar and his dog hurry off to their cottage.

“Let’s get out of here, we can investigate this in the morning,” Lakima says.

“Ah, Boss,” Eathwund says and points at an approaching spirit. The spirit of a young woman in a long dress can be seen floating amongst the tombstones coming towards them. Eathwund moves to meet her halfway.

“Can I help you miss,” Eathwund whispers.

The ghost pauses as if she has just noticed Eathwund.

“I am looking for my locket, it is strange that you are here in my house, did you take it?”

Eathwund assures the ghost that he did not take her locket. She tells him that the locket was a gift from her parents, it is silver and has an image of both her parents inside.

“It is all I have of them now, and is precious to me,” she says.

Eathwund learns that she is Catlina Jovani. She cannot understand where her locket has gone as she always wears it. She even turned down an offer from Gabriel Valcori to buy it for far more than it was worth. It is too important to her to part with. Once Eathwund promises to look for it she slowly vanishes.

“Now two ghosts are missing items,” Lakima says.

“Boss!” Eathwund says and points at a third ghost drifting toward them. The ghost is that of a large, fat man holding a sword in one hand. His other hand is missing and ethereal blood drips from the stump.

“You there! I know you have my hand! Return it now or die!”

Eathwund is forced to fight the ghost. With two quick slashes, the ghost is torn asunder and falls to the ground. The ghost is slowly sucked into the earth.

“You have not heard the last from Bruno Montanari, I will return every night to hunt you down!” the ghost says as it disappears.

“Three ghosts!” Lakima exclaims, “This is ridiculous, let’s get out of here while we still can.”

“What could be stirring them all up?” Eathwund asks.

“Danforth, let's check into his friends, maybe they were at the funeral.”

They head over to the caretaker’s cottage and knock on the door repeatedly. There is no answer.

“Get out here Fendar, I know you are in there!” Lakima shouts.

Fendar slowly opens the door. Lakima asks about Danforth’s friends. Fendar checks the death registry and shows it to Lakima. It appears he had only six people at the burial and all were representatives from merchant guilds. No apparent friends or family.

“No friends then, what is his connection to Arcos, or Catlina, or Bruno?” Lakima asks.

Fendar starts at Bruno’s name. With some hesitation, he confesses that Bruno Montanari worked for Gabriel Valcori, the graverobber. Fendar had been paid to allow them to rob graves.

“We will have to pay a visit to this merchant Valcori!” Lakima says.

“Begging your pardon, but you can’t”, Fendar says.

“Why not.”

“He’s dead, I buried him in the cemetery five days ago,” Fendar says.

“Show us the grave,” Lakima says with a sigh.

“Back out in the cemetery?” Brovin asks with a quiver in his voice.

Fendar leads them back out into the cemetery. During the walk, Lakima tells Fendar that he needs to promise not to disturb any more graves. Knowing full well that Fendar used to sell corpses to their fallen companion Ashdoshan. He tries putting a geas on Fendar but the gravedigger is surprisingly resistant and the spell has no effect. Lakima resorts to threatening Fendar if he learns of any graves being disturbed.

“Here it is,” Fendar says pointing at a freshly closed grave. A mound of dirt lies above a grave. The tombstone says, “Gabriel Valcori – beloved husband and father, benefactor to the poor and destitute, 498”. Lakima tells Fendar to dig up the grave.

“But you said…”

“Never mind what I said, dig it up.”

Under the moonlight, Fendar gets to work digging up the grave. Since it was a recent burial, the work goes fast. He reaches the coffin and grasps the lid. Before Fendar can touch the lid the spectre of a well-dressed merchant rises from the grave and grasps Fendar around the neck. Fendar lets out a gurgle and collapses. Eathwund frees his sword and quickly attacks the spectre slicing through the ethereal form. In turn, the spectre twice tries to reach out and touch Eathwund but he is too quick for it. At last, Eathwund slashes through the spectre's neck and it is dispatched.

“Search the coffin,” Lakima says to Brovin.

Without complaint, Brovin searches the coffin. He finds a fresh corpse of a man and goes through the man’s pockets and searches under him finding nothing. Eathwund checks Fendar lying crumpled on the ground but tells everyone that Fendar is dead.

“This is a mess, we need to let the church know about this,” Lakima says. 

The three men leave the open grave and coffin and leave the cemetery returning to the manor.

The next day Lakima, Eathwund, and Brovin go to visit Abbot Marta. They explain what happened at the cemetery. Marta agrees to go to the cemetery that day with some guards. Lakima suggests he bring some assistants.

Later in the day, Marta returns. He tells the adventurers that Fendar has been laid to rest. He would have risen as an undead in a few nights. They consecrated the ground of Valcori’s grave which will hopefully put an end to him.

“I suggest we make an official visit to Valcori’s family,” Abbot Marta says.

The adventurers go with a few members of the town watch and Abbot Marta to the Valcori manor in Edgerton. They are let in and meet with Gustav Valcori the head of the family. Gustave is indignant that any stolen items could be in his home.

“How dare you speak ill of my father, the Count will hear of this,” Gustav says angrily.

“I have already talked to the count and we are going to search the manor,” Marta says.

The two guards search the house but do not find anything suspicious.

“Marta, let me check for the items,” Domago says.

“What is his standing here!” Gustav shouts.

“It is only a spell,” Domago says. He casts the locate object spell and describes the golden cat.

“The golden cat is in the cellar,” Domago says matter of fact fully.

“Well?” Marta demands of Gustav.

Gustav claims that there is a locked cellar that they have never been able to enter since his father died. He is sure there could be nothing of interest there.

“Lucky for you we brought a Locksmith,” Lakima says pointing at Brovin.

Brovin, Eathwund, and Lakima descend into the cellar and find a locked door. Brovin manages to open it. They find an empty room. Using the wand of secret door detection Lakima locates and opens a secret door to a hallway.

“I think there is a trap in here triggered by that flagstone,” Brovin says pointing at the floor. He reaches down and carefully tries to disarm it.

“I think I got it,” he says and then they hear a clunk and a blade whirls out of a pillar slicing Brovin in half. The thief manages a brief scream before dying.

Brovin dies

Domago pulls the mangled corpse out of the hallway.

“He is surely dead,” Domago says.

“We'll bring him back,” Lakima says.

“What. Here?”

“Why not here?”

Domago sighs and then concentrates and prays over Brovin’s mangled corpse. Calling out Brovin’s name several times. A glow settles over the corpse and the injuries slowly disappear, then his chest begins to rise and fall. Domago checks Brovin carefully.

“He is alright. But he will not be moving around for a few weeks.”

Lakima instructs August to stay with Brovin while he, Luna, Eathwund, and Domago continue on.

“We should send for Grasshopper,” Lakima says. He tells August to tell the guards to send a runner with a message for Grasshopper.

“We can manage,” Domago says and casts Find Traps. He quickly points out the trigger for the blade trap and finds another. The three adventurers (and one charmed captive) carefully make their way past the traps. Another locked door blocks their advance. Lakima instructs Luna to use the Helm to open the door. She casts Knock to open the door. Here Domago finds a small chamber with a pit trap. He instructs everyone how to get past it. Luna uses the Helm to unlock another door. This leads to a trapped hall where Domago shows them how to bypass it. A locked door blocks them again and Luna uses the last charge in the helm to open it. This locked door leads to a small room. There is a fine walnut table with a chair, three large lockboxes, and two jewelry boxes on a side table.

“The large jewelry box and the middle lock box are trapped,” Domago warns.

“And us without our lockpickers,” Lakima says.

“We should wait for Grasshopper but I am impatient,” Lakima says. He casts a spell on the lockboxes and all of the wood is turned to dust. The metal brackets and lock fall to the floor. Inside they see many sacks. Searching these they find jewelry, gems, gold coins, silver coins, and a gold statuette of a cat.

“Oro, I assume,” Domago says.

“Well at least we found the gold cat,” Lakima says.

As they are searching, they find two ledger books. One is a fake accounting of the Valcori assets and the other shows all of the items Gabriel Valcori stole from the graveyard. Grasshopper arrives having been summoned by the town watch. Lakima asks him to open the two jewelry boxes. He tries to disarm the one that Domago tells him is trapped. He fails and is pricked on the finger by a needle. But nothing untoward happens. Either the poison has dried up or he is just resistant to it. Then he opens it finding a small silver locket with two faded portraits in it.

“The locket, of the young lady,” Eathwund says.

“Surely, this final jewel box cannot contain that man’s arm?” Lakima says.

“Hand,” Eathwund says.

“What?”

“He was missing only his hand.”

Grasshopper is unable to pick the lock on the large jewelry box so Eathwund picks it up and tears the lid off ruining the fancy box. Inside, resting on a velvet pillow is a silver prosthetic hand. Eathwund holds it up triumphantly.

Brovin starts picking up all of the stolen treasure.

“We can’t keep it Brovin,” Lakima says.

“Why not?”

“It is not ours,” Lakima says with a sigh.

“Are you sure, no one will know?”

The treasure is handed over to Abbot Marta who promises to return it to its rightful owners using the information in the ledgers. The silver hand, locket, and golden cat will be re-buried with their owners.

“I guess when the thief Valcori was buried in the same graveyard he used to steal from it disturbed the rest of the dead,” Domago says.

“Let’s avoid that cemetery from now on,” Lakima says.

The Hook

I was thrilled to have one of the players in my game group pushing the other players to go back into a tough adventure and finish things. With this group, the leader usually decides whether the adventurers should continue based on a very mercenary risk/reward ratio. His character did not want to re-enter the adventure because of the danger. Two characters died last session.

Once the Spider Caves were cleared I had a half-dozen hooks for the party for the next adventure. I need a lot of hooks with this group of players because their characters frequently pass on adventures if they do not feel the reward is worth it. Such as the trial of having high-level overly rich characters in the campaign. One of the characters rarely spends gold and has accumulated a King's ransom. I always eagerly read articles on separating characters from their gold but I usually find the suggestions disappointing.

The hook they chose was the kidnapping of an NPC who has been helpful to them in the past. This is always a good hook to get any character involved but I have to be careful not to overdo it. This adventure was a one-session encounter that I wrote. Though I do use and modify a lot of pre-written adventures I still do occasionally write something new.

Session 154: The Spider Caves

Lakima (human magic-user), Eathwund (human fighter), Grasshopper (human monk), Domago (human cleric NPC), Brovin (human thief NPC), Aelshara (half-elven fighter/magic-user NPC).

The members of the Company of the Black Dragon are at a Copper Mine camp near the village of Whetwhistle. Having dealt with a strange abomination that attacked some miners they discuss whether to head back down into the mines with Whexley Windham the part-owner of the mine.

“We’re not going back down there if there are giant spiders,” one of the miners says.

“Could you go back down and make sure all of the spiders are dead?” Whexley asks.

“Certainly, it is good for the village and the mine if we clear this,” Grasshopper promised.

Whexley looked relieved but Lakima interrupted and provided a caveat. He requested that all of the aetherium be removed from the mine as soon as possible. Whexley was quick to agree. The foreman Astrid spoke of how long it would take but Whexley waved her quiet.

Domago cast healing spells on Grasshopper and Aelshara because they were injured. Everyone else indicated that they were okay. Eathwund looked like he had never taken any injuries just a half-hour earlier.

Astrid accompanied the group back into the mine and manned the crane lowering them down to the lower levels. From there they quickly made their way down to the lowest levels of the mine where they had recently fought the giant spiders. Lakima checked with the arrow of direction for more spiders but it just pointed further down.

“Try southeast,” Lakima says to Grasshopper.

Grasshopper led the group through the strange burrowed tunnels until he arrived at a collapsed tunnel. A slight breeze with a hint of rot in the air suggested that the tunnel might lead somewhere.

“Eathwund, do you think you could move these stones?” Grasshopper asked.

Eathwund set down his weapons and shield and got to work. He used his magical giant strength to shift huge boulders out of the way. Grasshopper helps by moving some of the smaller rocks. Soon a breeze of foul-smelling air filled the tunnel as Eathwund shifted a last, large boulder out of the way.

“Let me get out in front a way,” Grasshopper whispered.

Grasshopper soon disappeared quietly down the tunnel which curved a few times and then went steeply down entering natural caves. The floor, of the caves was covered in fungus and giant fungus grew up to heights of more than six feet. Several tunnels headed off in different directions.

After a moment of thought, Grasshopper points east into the largest cave. Within a few steps as the light of his torch fills the cave they hear the piercing, unmistakable sound of a shrieker. Brovin and Aelshara fall to the cave floor clutching their ears while the others quickly stuffed cotton in their ears.

“It’s a shrieker!” Lakima shouted.

Seeing a translucent form in the distance moving slowly into the cave Lakima acts quickly and casts disintegrate. The object vanishes reduced to powder.

“I hope there was no treasure in it,” Brovin says.

“Oh, yeah,” Lakima shrugged.

The sound of the shrieker continued until the group rushed through the cave. As they exited the cave and the shrieking stopped Eathwund saw a giant spider scuttling rapidly toward them. Grasshopper fired several arrows and Lakima threw several darts hitting the spider before it reached Eathwund. Eathwund then quickly dispatched the spider with his sword.

Following Grasshopper the adventurers enter a large cave with a pool of water where they are ambushed by four giant spiders. One circles behind them and attacks Eathwund and Aelshara while three more attack Grasshopper and Domago. Lakima casts an Ice Storm spell that drives off one spider and badly injures two others. While Eathwund hacks down one spider, Grasshopper takes care of the other two. Then Grasshopper chased after the fleeing spider hitting it with several arrows. It was later killed and eaten by a 20-foot-long giant centipede. The Centipede was killed by the adventurers through the use of darts and arrows.

In the large cave, Grasshopper identified and killed three more shriekers. Leaving the cave, they returned to the tunnel they entered from that led back up to the copper mine. Heading north they encounter more spiders and kill them. Grasshopper having learned the weak spots of the spiders kills two with single blows with his fists. Later they come across a chamber lit by sunlight.

Looking upward, Grasshopper sees a narrow shaft 100 feet long leading to the hillside above. The shaft is covered in weeds and vines.

“Looks like this is how they are getting into the mines,” Grasshopper tells the others, “The miners could use this entrance to access these caves.”

Heading north Grasshopper silently sneaks into a cave and spots a giant spider resting atop a huge five-foot-tall mushroom. He heads back and tells Eathwund. Eathwund moved quickly into the chamber and attacked the spider as it leaped down. Soon another spider joins it and both are killed. Looking west into a dark cave they see a much larger spider sitting amongst a clutch of white eggs.

“Let’s be done with this,” Lakima says.

Lakima casts a fireball spell detonating it in the cave with the spider queen. A wall of fire bursts from the cave and the spider also comes flying out at the adventurers. After a brief fight, Eathwund and Grasshopper kill it.

After checking the remaining caves in the area and finding them empty the adventurers returned to the surface. At the surface, the adventurers meet with the miners and assure them that the spider nest has been destroyed. It is safe to enter the mines. The miners seem unconvinced. Whexley tries to convince them as well. Astrid comes up from the mine after having viewed the aetherium deposit for herself. She tells them that aetherium is rarely found so close to the surface. The dwarves have a monopoly on it since it is usually mined so far underground. Lakima has a conversation with Whexley and the miners and he offers 1 gold for every pound of aetherium brought out of the mines. This excites the miners who quickly get to work.

Astrid tells the group that there are thousands of pounds of aetherium in the find below. Lakima decides to change his offer to the first 1,000 lbs of aetherium brought out of the mines. The group settles in at the Goose Inn in Whetwhistle. Lakima sends a boy back to Edgerton with a message for August his apprentice. Later that day the boy returns with August who is carrying the magical spade of excavation.

Eathwund and Grasshopper descend into the mine to help the miners. But with the spade of excavation and his giant strength, Eathwund extracts the entire deposit of aetherium in little more than an hour. The aetherium ore, broken into small chunks is transported by cart to Whetwhistle where Lakima asks for it all to be dumped into a large pile. Using a limited wish spell Lakima makes all of the aetherium vanish.

“Did I just imagine the rock?” Whexley says looking at the empty field in astonishment.

“Yes – it was just an illusion,” Lakima says.

“But why?”

“I work in mysterious ways,” Lakima says, “You should forget about this.”

With the copper mine up and running the group mounts their horses to return to Edgerton. Lakima has a few words with Whexley suggesting that with the spade of excavation being left with Astrid he expects much better results out of the mine.

Late that day they return to Edgerton. Alayna asks Lakima why a simple spider infestation at the mine took so many days to clear up. Lakima takes her down to the vault in the cellar to show her what they dug up. When he opens the vault door, aetherium spills out into the hallway.

“You filled the vault with rocks?”

Lakima tries to explain aetherium to Alayna. She takes a small sample to study on her own. Domago heads over to the Church of St. Aleena. Aelshara disappears for a few days. Eathwund visits the Sign of the Purple Bugbear. He sees Eris has been moved to waitress from her chambermaid position. His manager, Yana, tells him that Eris’ dangerous manners work best in the taproom. Yana reports no issues with the local gangs. Eathwund’s last talk with the local gangs seems to have them giving the Inn a wide berth.

Grasshopper goes to see the smith Cromly. He negotiates a price for two magical brass knuckles which Cromly says he will have ready in a week.

Lakima contacts Willy Brunch, the stone mason they used for a few projects. Lakima invites him over to the manor and asks him if he can construct a pair of archways out of the aetherium stones. Willy agrees and the two spend several days coming up with plans. Once they are ready, Lakima and Willy go over to the Mages Guild and set about installing an archway in one of the classrooms. Kenrae and Rune Frost arrive and ask many questions about what they are doing.

“I am building a permanent magical gateway between the school and the Shrine of Medamellara far to the north,” Lakima tells them.

“I have seen such things, but I have not heard of one being built in modern times,” Kenrae says, “Most were built in the distant past.”

“I am the most powerful mage in Dolmvay, and I plan to rediscover the secrets of the ancient magics,” Lakima states grandly.

A few days later, Lakima invites the other members of the Company of the Black Dragon to journey north with him to the Shrine of Medamellara. Aelshara is not around, but Brovin, Domago, Grasshopper, August, and Eathwund join him. They board the Cloudstealer with its crew and head north. A day and a half later they land in the Valley of Heroes not far from the entrance to the shrine.

Lakima points at the colorful statues outside the shrine’s entrance and tells Grasshopper that these are representations of his goddess Medamellara. Inside they meet with the high priest Toffin and Lakima shows Grasshopper the Mana Well.

Eathwund tells everyone that he has decided to risk recharging his plate mail armor in the well. Lakima tells Grasshopper that this is a rare event, and he will get to see the mana well in action. Eathwund holds his armor out into the Mana Well holds it there for a few moments and then withdraws it. Lakima comes over to check the armor, using his magical Lens. He tells Eathwund that it worked. The Armor is undamaged and has gained charges.

Lakima, Willy, and Toffin are joined by Lethnearinos (a silver dragon who is in elven form) to discuss where to place the teleportation arch in the Shrine. Toffin is at first concerned about the possibility of the shrine being attacked from the archway. Lakima assures him that the Mages School is very safe. They decide to construct the archway in a secret room in the study hall of the shrine. Willy spends a few days constructing the arch out of Aetherium stone. Once he is done, Lakima spends several days with the enchantment. Using knowledge from the notes of the forgotten mage of the Ghost Tower and his magic Lakima successfully readies the archway to receive magic. He casts a teleportation spell on the archway connecting it to the archway in Edgerton. But this is only a one-time spell. He then casts a limited wish spell to make it permanent.

The group watches as an image of the room in the mages' guild back in Edgerton appears in the archway.

“Did it work?” several voices ring out.

Confident in his own work Lakima steps through the archway and arrives unharmed in Edgerton. He then steps back through and looks about expecting applause. His companions seem more shocked than anything. 

“Well I am all for a quick way home,” Brovin says and steps through the archway to Edgerton. Grasshopper passes through the archway a short time later.

Lakima spends a few hours with Toffin discussing the safety of the archway. Toffin wants to construct a portcullis on this end but Lakima envisions students from the Mages Guild passing back and forth at will.

Once everything is cleaned up the remaining members of the group board Cloudstealer and return to Edgerton in a few days. While he is away a Ducal Messenger calls with a letter for Lakima. Refusing to relinquish the letter to anyone else, the messenger stays in a room in the Manor until the Cloudstealer returns. Meanwhile, Grasshopper goes to Cromly’s and picks up and pays for the magical brass knuckles.

“I call them Cromly’s Fists of Fury!” Cromly says with a flourish. “But you can call them whatever you wish.”

Grasshopper takes the knuckles and tries them out on some stone blocks from a local stone worker near the shop. He seems satisfied.

The next day the Cloudstealer returns to Edgerton. Lakima accepts the letter from the Ducal messenger. It is a letter from Duke Robert informing him that they will begin construction of the first of the four ships. The Helm should be provided (and will be paid for) in 3 months.

Lakima begins plans for the construction of four helms for the Duke’s flying ships. He feels confident that with the aetherium he does not need Malyn’s help but he decides to consult the mage anyway. Lakima asks Eathwund to join him on a trip to the apothecary. Once they arrive, they see that something is amiss. Watchmen stand outside the shop. They are let in and find more watchmen in the shop along with Abbot Marta and Brother Donegal of the Church of St. Cuthbert. Marta explains that Malyn and his latest apprentice are missing. They have been missing for a few days.

“Malyn is under a geas not to leave the town, I believe that if he did the effects would be pretty severe,” Marta says looking at Lakima.

“He will be feeling very sick already, and in a few days, he will die,” Lakima says.

“Someone took him,” they both say at the same time.

There are no clues to indicate what happened. No sign of a struggle. While Lakima and Marta are talking, Eathwund examines a beautiful green statuette of a dragon. The dragon winks at him.

“That green dragon whelp winked at me,” Eathwund whispers to Lakima.

Lakima then suggests that he is here only to pick up the green dragon statuette that Malyn was examining for him.

“He lies!” the statuette squeaks in a high-pitched voice, “My master Malyn would never give me to anyone else!”

There is a lot of shouting at once but eventually, Lakima manages to get everyone to quiet down so he can speak to the dragon. He learns that Malyn and his apprentice were abducted two days ago by three men in black robes. The men stuffed the two victims into a coffin they found in the abandoned church attached to the shop. The watchmen check up on the story and learn that a group of six men dressed as monks passed through the north gate with a cart and a large wooden box.

“Maybe we can head them off,” Lakima says.

The company is joined by Aelshara and they board the Cloudstealer and head north. They stop at the end of the day at the village of Deepford. Here they speak with the head Warden.

“I seen ‘em. They were a strange group. Very suspicious. They stayed at the Inn last night and claimed to be priests of St. Johan, but they never said a word to our local priest Hetagg. One of the boys heard them planning to head north to Darkvale abbey,” Warden Newman tells them.

They get directions to Darkvale Abbey only 20 miles north of the village. The Cloudstealer descends near to the ground a few hundred feet from the ruins of the small abbey. From what the villagers in Deepford told them, the abbey has been abandoned for eighty years.

Quantity over quality

I had a recent Swords & Wizardry session that really demonstrated the importance of quantity over quality in high-level play. I was running a heavily modified version of The Hulking Abomination, a Level 6 D&D 5e adventure by Elven Tower and Victor Escalante. As a 6th level D&D 5th edition adventure I had to make some changes to get it to work for 12th level Swords & Wizardry. I just adjusted the statistics of the two main adversaries. I made the single Umber Hulk a 14 HD abomination and I increased the number of wolf spiders and made them 8th level. I also created much larger maps to allow for the increase in the number of monsters. The umber hulk was no match for my party of high-level players. But the wolf spiders decimated the characters. Two of the characters failed saves on lethal poison and had to be teleported to a nearby church. The players had to retreat and come back a few days later when they had recovered. The Wolf Spider ambush was a lot of fun to run as a GM and the players also had a lot of fun.

Session 153: The Hulking Abomination

Lakima (human magic-user), Eathwund (human fighter), Grasshopper (human monk), Domago (human cleric NPC), Brovin (human thief NPC), Aelshara (half-elven fighter/magic-user NPC).

The members of the Company of the Black Dragon return to their home in Edgerton aboard their flying ship the Cloudstealer.

In Edgerton, Lakima introduces Aelshara to his wife and servants. He also tells Alayna about their journey into the Underworld but he downplays the dangers. Aelshara takes a guest room in the Manor and asks if she can stay awhile to get used to this new time she has landed. Lakima offers her access to the Library of the Mages Guild which Aelshara takes advantage of.

Eathwund suggests to Eris that she might work as a chambermaid at his Inn the Sign of the Purple Bugbear. Eris appears completely lost now that she is back among the living but she accepts the offer. Eris is rude to guests who dare to speak with her but in Mirdton this sort of behaviour is not uncommon. Eathwund drops in every day to keep an eye on the Tavern and on Eris.

The journey to the Underworld seems to have unlocked new ideas in Lakima’s mind and he realizes he now can manipulate the magical energies required to cast spells of the 7th Circle. He sets about immediately studying how to recreate a spell of this complexity that he has encountered in his research. Lakima spends days in his quarters in the Mages Guild.

After a week back in Edgerton, Ian brings an announcement to Aldus about the Black Eagle tourney in Uthersberg. They decide to head to the tourney to compete. Aldus and Ian say goodbye to their friends and ride off to Uthersberg (the player who was running Aldus and his squire was away for a few sessions).

Grasshopper spends the days of downtime wandering about the large town. He gives a lot of his share of the treasure to poor children and the homeless. Soon he gains a reputation in the town for charity. He does set aside some gold for a magic item he wants to purchase.

A week later, a Royal Messenger arrives at the Manor. Alayna greets the messenger but he informs her he can only give the message to Lakima the Grey. Lakima has to be sent for but the messenger indicates that he will wait. When Lakima arrives, he opens the sealed letter from Duke Robert requesting an exclusive deal to supply flying ships to the Ducal fleet. Lakima writes a brief reply accepting the offer.

A few days later, a message arrives from the duke asking for a meeting at his hunting lodge in four days. Lakima asks Eathwund, Domago, and Grasshopper if they would like to join him. The three adventurers fly on the Cloudstealer to the Duke’s hunting lodge outside Dolmvay. Here they meet with Duke Robert and his retinue and discuss the construction of flying ships. After some negotiation, a deal is struck for Lakima to provide helms for four ships for 75,000 gold and the title of Mage of the Realm. With an agreement reached, they get back aboard the Cloudstealer and return to Edgerton.

Back in Edgerton, Lakima remembers that there are powerful spells he could not decipher in the spellbook he took from one of the twelve mages of the White Worm. Checking the spellbook he finds spells of the 7th Circle. He spends a few days studying the spells and manages to learn two of them and write them in his spellbook.

A letter asking for help arrives from Whetwhistle. Their friend and business partner Whexley Windham says that there was a collapse in the mine trapping two miners. When they dug a rescue tunnel for them, they did not find the two men but they did see strange, monstrous-sized tracks. Whexley asks if they could come and clear the mine. The miners are refusing to work.

Lakima, Eathwund, Grasshopper, Domago, Brovin, and Aelshara set out on horseback for Whetwhistle which is only six hours away. They head directly to the Goose Inn and speak with Whexley. He tells them nothing new has occurred. They have not abandoned the mine but they are not entering the lower levels.

“Well, it is not producing much of a profit for us so why don’t we seal it shut?” Lakima tells Whexley.

Whexley sputtered at this suggestion which would be the end of the hamlet. He insists that the mine has been producing a lot of copper and he is just waiting on a payment from the Mining Guild before sending the profits to the Company in Edgerton.

The adventurers accompanied by Whexley head up into the hills to the nearby mine. The journey only takes an hour. At the mining camp, they speak with Astrid Brightfist the mining foreman. She tells them the cave-in occurred at “Cave B” on the lower level where the new workings are located. Astrid leads them into the upper workings and shows them the lift that takes miners down (and ore up) from the lower workings.

“I will work the lift,” Astrid tells them, “Yell if you need to be brought back up.”

Astrid tells them if they are gone more than six hours, she will come looking for them.

The adventurers descend into a dark chamber lit dimly by the glow of a forge. Lakima uses the Staff of Power to cast light on Aelshara, Eathwund, and Domago. Grasshopper quietly slips into the darkness and tells the others to give him a lead he will scout ahead. Brovin silently follows him.

Grasshopper follows the tunnel and mine tracks to an open area. A hand-painted sign says “Cave A”. Two tracks enter a low tunnel (5 feet high) where there is a sign saying “Danger Low Ceiling.” He calls out for the other adventurers to catch up.

“Which way?” Grasshopper asks.

Lakima points south.

One track follows a tunnel to the southeast and the other follows a tunnel south. They can see immediately that the tunnel to the southeast has collapsed. While the others wait Grasshopper moves down the tunnel to check if it is impassible. He sees it is clearly impassible and he also sees movement.

“Look out!” Grasshopper yells as a flock of stirges erupts from the tunnel and flies amongst all of the adventurers trying to latch on and suck their blood. Grasshopper, Eathwund, and Lakima are attacked by many stirges while the others only have to contend with a pair each. Domago, Grasshopper, and Lakima each have a stirge grab onto them and start sucking blood. But they can throw them off or kill them. The stirges continue to fly about the group, getting killed when an adventurer can strike one. Domago and Lakima are again struck but eventually, all of the stirges are killed or driven off.

Stirges

“Let’s try the other tunnel,” a blood-soaked Lakima says.

The tunnel goes another 20 feet before they come to a cave-in. A 3-foot-high tunnel extends around the cave-in.

“This looks like the rescue tunnel,” Grasshopper says.

Grasshopper gets down on his hands and knees and crawls into the rescue tunnel. It is shored up only in a few spots and dug recently. The rest of the adventurers follow him. The rescue tunnel enters another cave where they can stand up.

“Cave B,” Grasshopper says pointing at a hand-painted sign on the wall.

This area shows signs of having been worked recently. Pick axes lie where they were dropped. A mine tunnel with tracks heads southeast. Grasshopper checks the cave floor for tracks and there are plenty, all human boot prints.

They continue to the east and enter another cave marked “Cave C”. A circular tunnel that appears to have been dug by a creature enters from the north. A pool of iridescent liquid lies before the tunnel. The group checks the pool but it seems harmless. Grasshopper leaps over the pool and scouts the area ahead. He finds a burrowed tunnel descending deep into the earth and another tunnel connecting to the mine. He comes back and tells everyone. They walk through the shallow puddle on the floor and head down the burrow deeper into the earth.

The burrow comes out in a small burrowed cave. Piles of rock debris lie about the chamber. Everything seems to have been dug from solid rock by a burrowing creature.

“Wait here and I will scout the surrounding area,” Grasshopper says.

While the other adventurers wait Grasshopper scouts the area. Tunnels enter from all directions and wind about in a maze. Some tunnels are impassible with large rocks blocking passage. Grasshopper does see a metal object on the floor of a cave shining in the light from his torch. He picks it up and finds it is a battered mining helmet. Grasshopper returns to the group and shows them the helmet.

“I don’t think we are going to find the miners alive,” Lakima says.

Grasshopper takes the lead and follows the most accessible tunnel entering a crossroads of tunnels he is startled when a pile of rubble erupts and an enormous brown, hairy spider covered in debris leaps out at him. The spider is larger than him and 3 feet tall. Grasshopper can barely yell a warning before spiders erupt from side passages and attack all of the adventurers from all directions.

Deadly spiders

Brovin who was in the back runs away down a side tunnel and hides. The other adventurers fight the giant spiders as best they can. Several of them are sliced by giant pincers dripping in ichor. Eathwund is cut from behind on his back and succumbs to darkness collapsing. Domago is cut off and slashed repeatedly before falling. Brovin, seeing what is happening tries to go to Domago’s aid and desperately kills a spider that is trying to drag Domago away. Grasshopper uses his fists on the spiders killing two and then killing one with a single punch to the thorax. Lakima casts magic missiles at the spiders as does Aelshara. Finally, the last of the spiders are driven off but Domago and Eathwund are dying. Thinking quickly, Lakima teleports both of them away.

“Where did you send them?” Grasshopper asks.

“To a friend in Edgerton,” he says.

Lakima suggests they retreat. They have lost two of their number and they can hear the clicking sounds of more spiders or worse echoing through the tunnels. The adventurers stagger to the tunnel leading up and out. On the way, Grasshopper hears a low moan and they find one of the missing miners.

Yelling for Astrid to lower the lift the group exits the lower mines.

“Where are the others?” Astrid asks.

Lakima tells Astrid how badly things have gone. They make their way to the surface to talk to the miners. One of the miners is overjoyed that his twin brother has been found alive. He is only unconscious and exhausted. They listen in horror as the adventurers describe the fight they had with the giant spiders.

“But these spiders could not have been what left the three-toed tracks and burrowed through the stone,” Whexley says.

When the unconscious miner is revived, he tells of being attacked by an insectoid creature standing on two legs. The creature had four sets of eyes and its gaze was hypnotic.

“We should close the mine and block the entrance,” Lakima says.

“But, without the mine, Whetwhistle will be abandoned,” Whexley pleads, “We need the mine!”

After some arguing Grasshopper convinces the others to sleep on it at the Goose Tavern. Lakima is reluctant to re-enter the mine, especially without Eathwund on hand.

Meanwhile, Eathwund awakens in a strange bed in a pleasant room. He sees the smiling face of Abbot Marta looking down at him.

“It was a near thing, my friend,” Marta says, “A few more moments and you would have been dead. It was lucky for you that it happened to me near when you appeared.”

“Tell me what sort of trouble you and Lakima have been getting yourself into.”

Eathwund briefly describes what happened. He sits up feeling remarkedly fit and healthy. Looking over he sees Domago resting in a nearby bed apparently still asleep. Seeing his gaze, Marta assures him that Domago will be fine.

When Domago awakes an hour later, he finds Eathwund already packed and ready to go wolfing down some beef stew.

“I arranged for horses,” Eathwund tells Domago, “I assume Lakima must have survived and magicked us out of those tunnels. But we had better rush back to Whetwhistle and see what happened.”

After a good night’s rest, Lakima, Grasshopper, Brovin, and Aelshara have breakfast at the Goose Inn. Lakima is still inclined to abandon the mine. As they eat, they hear horses ride up outside. The door to the Inn opens and Eathwund and Domago stride in. Domago immediately goes to Lakima and gives him a strong embrace.

“I owe you my life,” Domago says.

Eathwund merely nods at the group.

“Eathwund and Domago are back. I say we head back into the mine. This time we will be ready.” Grasshopper says.

“Do you two want to re-enter the mine?” Lakima asks Domago and Eathwund. Domago tells them yes and Eathwund shrugs.

“Okay,” Lakima says, “But be ready to get out of there if we encounter another nest of spiders.”

The adventurers and Whexley return to the Copper mine. The miners have kept watch on the entrance but no one has had the bravery to enter. Astrid volunteers to man the winch again to send them down into the lower mines.

Once on the lower level, the group makes their way into the burrow. They travel with fewer lights this time. Searching through the maze of tunnels, they see a cave in the distance where the rocks emit a strange blue glow but they cannot find a clear path to the cave. All of the tunnels near it are blocked by boulders. They can only peek through small openings.

“Maybe we can shift some of the rocks,” Lakima looks at Eathwund.

“This way,” Grasshopper waves, “I think I see a path.”

Following Grasshopper the group circles through the tunnels and arrives at the entrance to the strange cave. Grasshopper enters ahead of the others. The rocks are a dark grey but blue magical energy that seems to flow through the rocks like tiny sparks of lightning. In lights the rubble-filled cave in an eerie blue glow. Looking down at the floor, Grasshopper sees massive footprints of a three-toed creature and he sees a gnawed human femur bone.

“Look at this guys,” Grasshopper says. From the corner of his eye, he sees the rubble shift and an enormous insectoid creature stands up on two legs and moves toward him grasping with three-clawed hands. The creature has a pair of insectoid eyes on its head and a second pair of more humanoid eyes.

All of the adventurers hear and see the creature stand up. Lakima beholds the strange eyes on the creature and shouts a warning.

“Don’t look into its eyes!”

Eathwund and Grasshopper attack from close in while averting their gazes. They still manage to strike the hard carapace of the creature several times. Aelshara looks at the creature and casts a magic missile striking it. She finds the eyes mesmerizing but manages to look away. Domago tries to cast a spell but is struck with confusion when he regards the creatures’ eyes. Lakima summons his protector which slashes at the creature with its mystical sword.

Suddenly, the confused Domago takes a swing at Aelshara with his mace barely missing her head. She screams in anger at him.

“He is under a confusion charm,” Lakima yells. Aelshara tries to move away from Domago. Lakima speaks a single magical word to Domago and the priest is stunned and falls to the ground.

“That will take care of him for now,” Lakima says.

“Spiders!” Brovin yells from the back of the group. Looking behind them, Lakima sees a pair of giant spiders crawling toward Brovin. He casts a Wall of iron and blocks several of the tunnels leading to them.

Meanwhile, Eathwund and Grasshopper have been avoiding the claws of the abomination and have landed many hits. The creature begins to stagger then it burrows into the walls of the chamber and vanishes.

“Where did it go?” Lakima asks.

Everyone looks about. They can hear the creature digging its way through rock all around them. Stone begins to shake in one of the blocked passages and then it clears and they see the creature, some of its wounds regenerated, and four giant spiders behind it.

“Lightning bolt,” Lakima yells and casts a bolt of lightning straight down the tunnel and into the abomination and the spiders. All of the creatures are struck and only one of the spiders manages to drag itself away. Grasshopper chases after it but it squeezes itself through a narrow hole in a blocked tunnel.

Once the rest of the group arrives Lakima casts passwall clearing a section of the tunnel. But it is not enough the tunnel is still blocked.

“We have done enough,” Lakima says, “Let’s get out of here.”

Before leaving Lakima and Grasshopper take samples of the strange, magical rock. The adventurers make their way back to the surface. They meet up with Astrid and tell her the worst of the creatures are dead.

Up in the mining camp, Lakima apprises Whexley of the situation. He tells him that the borrowing creature is dead but that there still appears to be a nest of spiders in the lower levels. Maybe they should only work the upper levels. Whexley is downcast. He tells them that the best veins of copper are in the lower levels. Lakima also tells him that they saw signs of a vein of gold in the lower mines.

“Any idea what this strange rock might be,” Grasshopper says to Astrid and shows her a small stone. Even in the bright sunlight the grey stone still shows dim flickers of blue magic.

“I am not sure,” Astrid says turning it over in her hands, “It couldn’t be.”

“Aetherium!” she breathes with astonishment.

Astrid is reluctant to say more but eventually admits that it could be aetherium. A rare stone found only deep underground in the Callahiem Mountains. It is mined by the dwarves and sold to the gnomes to make magic items.

“Now we have to keep the mine open,” Whexley says hopefully.

“We will think about it,” Lakima says.

“We can head back down after another day of rest,” Grasshopper says.

Underestimated

My Swords & Wizardry campaign has lasted much longer than I expected. We have been playing for almost four years. The player's characters are now between levels 10 and 14. Finding adventures for characters of this level takes work. Designing them is more challenging. In this session, I modified "enSider 111: Searching the River Styx" a D&D 5e adventure for levels 3-16 by Mike Myler.

The adversaries in the adventure are three demon lords. This gave me a lot of leeway to tailor the demons to fit the level of the players. But I underestimated the players yet again.  A 15th-level demon with a lot of special abilities looks difficult on paper, and it would be for one or two players, but it is not really all that tough for four characters and two hirelings. This is a dilemma for the GM of a high-level campaign. The monsters suggested for this level tend to be solitary. They could kill a PC in a single attack but it is more likely they will struggle to hit anyone and will be buried under a hail of attacks from the players.

Multiple attacks are key. If I was to redesign the encounter I would increase the area of the encounter and bring in multiple underlings for each demon. They only have to be mid-level, it is their quantity that is important. Quantity means more attacks and more targets to draw off the fire from the main monster.

Session 152: The Caves of Avarice

Lakima (human magic-user), Eathwund (human fighter), Aldus (human cavalier), Grasshopper (human monk), Domago (human cleric NPC), Aelshara (half-elven fighter/magic-user NPC).

The members of the Company of the Black Dragon and Aelshara are in the Underworld looking for their companion Fenris. A fallen angel named Sotira has told them that if they recover the broken pieces of her soul, she can rescue Fenris for them.

The adventurers reach the shore of the river Styx and see the stone dock that they first alighted from. However, there is no bell with which to summon the boatman.

“There is no bell, does anyone have one?” Lakima asks.

“I think the lost souls are not supposed to leave the underworld,” Domago replies.

Aelshara reaches into her bag of holding and produces a bell explaining that she uses it on a tripwire to protect herself when she is camping outdoors. She hands it to Lakima who stands on the stone dock and rings it loudly. The noise startles a flock of the large black birds they have seen before. The birds fly up and circle above them.

A few minutes later the boatman and his craft come into view materializing out of the mist over the river. Lakima walks up and hands the boatman a silver coin but he is blocked from boarding. Grasshopper reminds him that the toll is 2 silver coins. Everyone pays and the boatman pushes off from the dock.

The boatman

“We seek the shards of the soul of the fallen angel,” Lakima says to the boatman who ignores him and continues steering the boat.

The boat moves upriver for a pace before shifting planes and then entering a large lake. On the shore of the lake, the boatman steers the craft into a cave mouth from which a stream exits. They continue underground taking tributaries until the boatman slows the boat and pulls up to a narrow beach with a stone dock. A single lantern hangs from a stone pillar on the dock. Everyone exits the boat and the boatman steers the boat away and disappears into the mist.

“I guess this is the place?” Grasshopper says.

Grasshopper leads the group toward a large cave mouth. He enters and gestures for the group to give him a chance to get ahead of them. Grasshopper vanishes quietly into the shadows. After a minute the rest of the group follows the monk into the tunnel. Soon they smell the most delicious smells of baking food. Domago says he can smell fresh bread baking, Lakima smells kafee, and Eathwund smells roast venison on a campfire. Once they compare notes, they realize each is smelling their favorite meal.

“Careful, I think this is an illusion” Lakima warns everyone.

Grasshopper suddenly appears out of the shadows and warns everyone that he can see an enormous demon ahead in a cave full of rotting sludge. The group signals to each other to make certain all are ready and then they rush around a corner of the tunnel and into a well-lit cave. Sitting in a pile of disgusting slop most of the group see an enormous demon that is buried in rolls of fat. It uses flabby arms to pick up mushrooms, slime, and rotted food and shove it into its mouth.

Seeing the adventurers the demon continues to chew and then says, “Oh goodness me, a live meal! You will taste delightful!”

“Attack!” Aldus yells.

“Attack? I only see a banquet table covered in food?” Domago says.

“It’s an illusion!” Lakima yells at Domago.

Aldus and Eathwund run forward and attack with their swords. They strike deep but the enormous fold of fat prevents a lot of the damage. Grasshopper leaps up upon a huge mushroom and fires arrows into the demon which appear to do nothing.

The demon stands up and breathes out a noxious green cloud from its mouth which envelops Grasshopper and Aldus. The two begin gasping and choking. Lakima uses the staff of power to “blow” the gaseous cloud away from the group allowing them to continue attacking. Aldus in particular slices deep into the side of the creature with his sword deathdealer. He hears his sword yelling in triumph telepathically.

Grasshopper also uses his magic sword and lands blow after blow. With the three of them hacking away the demon loses more and more greenish-yellow fluids and then it suddenly vanishes. All of the attackers pause and look about them in confusion. Lakima casts detect invisibility and he sees the demon standing where it was before rearing back to swipe at Eathwund.

“It is invisible, standing exactly where it was before,” Lakima yells, “Kill it!”

The attackers immediately begin swinging at the very same spot they were attacking before. After a moment the demon appears but it is now swollen and bloated to an enormous size. The demon swells up and explodes spraying everyone in the chamber with greenish-yellow goop. Aldus sees a golden crystal fly out of the creature and land in the slop. He stoops and picks it up. Only Domago and Lakima avoid being covered in slime. With the demon destroyed the illusion is broken and Domago beholds the horrible scene for the first time. He struggles to keep from vomiting into the pits of sludge.

“Let’s get out of here!” Domago yells.

The adventurers begin to leave. Grasshopper calls for everyone to wait and says they should search through the sludge. Putting on his monocle of magic sense Lakima tells Grasshopper that there is nothing magical here.

“Remember what the angel told us about temptation,” he says, “We have a mission let’s get going.”

The adventurers return to the banks of the river Styx. The boatman is gone but soon returns after Lakima rings the bell on the dock. They pay the boatman once more.

“This boatman is pulling in a tidy sum of silver today,” Lakima says.

The boat heads off downriver through the tunnel underground. This time the trip takes only a few minutes and a single plane shift before the boatman pulls up to another dock and narrow ledge in front of a cave.

Grasshopper takes the lead again. He moves quietly into the shadows and makes his way down the tunnel feeling uneasy. After a few minutes, he comes to a branch with a pair of tunnels. On his right, the tunnel continues much the same. On the left, he sees a tunnel littered with obscene and blasphemous graffiti scrawled on the walls and floor. Written in blood, charcoal, and paint or scratched into the rock. Leaning down Grasshopper scratches an arrow in the dirt pointing left. He then moves onward.

Behind Grasshopper the rest of the group reaches the two tunnels and sees the arrow in the dirt. They follow the arrow. As the group continues forward their eyes are drawn to the blasphemous symbols and messages on the walls and floor. Each feels a compulsion to add his own unconscious thoughts he dares not share with others. Hearing that the party behind him has slowed Grasshopper returns to the group. He sees a puzzled Lakima and Domago watching while Aelshara, Eathwund, and Aldus scrawl symbols on the walls of the tunnels.

“Aldus! What are you doing!” Domago asks.

“I think they are under a compulsion,” Lakima says, “It is best to let them get it out of their system.”

After a few minutes, each of the three finishes their writing and seems satisfied. Once they see the others watching each tries to hide their embarrassment.

“Never mind that, let’s get moving!” Lakima says getting everyone's attention.

“I see a light ahead,” Grasshopper says.

Aldus in particular is eager to move on. “Shall I charge in and attack whatever awaits us?”

“Why not?” Lakima says.

With a war cry filled with anger, Aldus races forward his sword drawn. Soon Aelshara and Eathwund join him. Lakima, Domago, and Grasshopper hurry to catch up.

They enter a cave where the floor is littered with hundreds of papers, books, and parchments, piles of them. A hateful crimson-skinned demon stands amongst piles of papers gleefully picking up handfuls and tearing them apart in its powerful fists. Scripts drift down from the ceiling and rain down all over the chamber.

Aldus and Eathwund race straight to the demon to attack it with hesitation. Grasshopper uses the raining papers to hide his movements and he sneaks in behind the demon which is engaged in melee. The demon takes up a 9-foot black, barbed spear and defends itself from attack. The spear strikes Eathwund in the side cutting into the adventurer. But the three adventurers attacking the demon in melee prove too much and the demon is staggered with wounds. It seems the demon will fall but it roars in anger and redoubles its attacks making two strikes to every one from each of the adventurers. Even this is not enough and the demon falls only to burst into flame like it is made of parchment. Nothing but ash remains.

“Look for the shard in its remains!” Lakima yells.

“What remains?” Aldus says. Even the ash has blown away.

The group starts looking hopelessly through the piles of books and parchments.

“These are prayer books and religious texts of lawful gods,” Domago says.

Once it becomes clear that finding the shard could take days, Domago casts the spell locate object moves unerringly to a pile of paper, and pulls the shining golden shard clear of the mess.

“I have it!”

Lakima takes a final scan of the chamber with his monocle looking for magic and sees none. He then waves for everyone to leave. The adventurers make their way back through the tunnels of heresy this time managing to avoid stopping to add their own thoughts. At the dock, Lakima rings the bell for the boatman who returns and picks them up. It is another fairly short trip taking only an hour before they are deposited on the shores of another ledge on the side of the river. A tunnel mouth beckons them to enter.

Grasshopper waves for everyone to allow him to take the lead. Within a few minutes, he sees a golden, shimmering mist ahead. Piles of gold coins litter the floor. It is immediately clear that they are illusions as Grasshopper finds he can step through the piles of gold. It does slow him enough that he finds that the other adventurers have caught up with him. Grasshopper looks at Eathwund and the magical bow that he would like to take and reaches out for it.

“No,” Eathwund simply says and slaps Grasshopper’s hand away. Grasshopper immediately regains his senses and shakes his head. As he starts to explain to Eathwund he sees Lakima reach for Eathwund’s coin purse – but it is securely tied to Eathwund’s belt and Lakima finds he cannot tug it off. Eathwund shakes his head at Lakima who seems bemused by his own actions.

“C’mon,” Grasshopper says motioning everyone forward. He leads the way into a large cave where the floor is buried under mounds of gold coins, gems, and golden objects. Some items are still clutched in rotting or skeletal hands unwilling to part with their possessions in the afterlife. A palpable, iron scent of evil wafts from a black-skinned demon lying upon the piles of treasure.

“Kill it!” Aldus shouts and rushes forward into the mounds of gold. His movement is immediately slowed as the piles of coins shift and sink under his feet.

“Wait!” Lakima shouts and he casts Luminous bridge creating a ramp directly up to and through the demon which is struggling to its feet. Eathwund and Aldus climb up the ramp and begin slashing at the struggling demon. The demon spits out a stream of greenish-black spittle upon Eathwund, Aldus, Domago, and Lakima. The spittle is acidic and burns their flesh and then a moment later bursts into flames igniting their clothes. Lakima takes the time to beat out the flames. Aldus and Eathwund ignore the flames and continue to attack the demon which defends itself with a wickedly barbed polearm. After a few rounds of combat, the demon collapses like a burst bag of fouled wine spilling its poison out over the gold coins.

“Ahh yuck!” Aldus says. While the others search through the piles of treasure for the angel’s crystal shard, Aldus takes out a sack and scoops handfuls of gold coins from an area not covered in demon acid. Lakima just shakes his head but does not say anything.

It is Lakima who finds the golden shard and puts it in a sack. But Grasshopper finds a dented shield, a long sword, and a strangely glowing emerald. Aldus tells him that his sword has told him that the shield is cursed so they leave it. But the other items are placed in the bag of holding.

Looking wistfully at the mounds of coins and gems the group leaves and heads back to the river Styx. Lakima rings the bell on the dock and they soon see the boatman guiding his boat up to the dock. Lakima tries communicating that they want to return to Ankev the city of the dead but the boatman ignores him.

This time the trip takes a few hours and indeed the boatman drops them at the canyon marking the entrance to the city of the dead. The bone gate argues against allowing them to enter but eventually, Lakima convinces it to open. Their trip through the ghoul canyon proves uneventful and they make their way to Sotira’s mausoleum. This time the magic mouth on the door is not triggered and they are able to enter into Sotira’s presence.

“Please give me the shards of my soul,” Sotira tells Lakima immediately sensing that he has them in a bag.

“Where is our friend?” Lakima asks.

Sotira calls out for Eris who shyly steps out from behind a wooden screen. Eathwund asks her if she is all right and Eris tells Eathwund that she feels safe here. Safe for the first time in a long time.

Lakima hands the golden soul shards to Sotira who takes them and carefully assembles them with the other broken shards creating a golden, crystal in the shape of a heart. There is a burst of golden light and a moment later they behold a glowing, beautiful celestial standing before them. All of the adventurers are overcome with awe, some more than others. Domago stands dumbly his mouth hanging open.

“What is your wish?” the celestial asks.

“Fenris?” Lakima asks.

Sotira pauses for a moment and then there is a flash of golden light. Fenris appears, looking almost like he did in life. But he is clearly a lost soul. His skin is drawn and grey, and his eyes are clear whites.

“Fenris!” Eris cries and runs over to him. Uncharacteristically, Fenris leans over and allows Eris to hug him. Then he beholds the angel and staggers back from her golden glow.

“You came back for me,” Fenris says in wonder, looking at each face of the companions he knew in life.

“Of course,” Lakima says importantly, “We are the Company of the Black Dragon, in life and in death.”

“Fenris!” the angel says getting his attention. “I can restore one soul to life allowing them to leave this place, step forward for you only need to feel my touch.”

Fenris takes a hesitant step toward the angel’s outstretched hand. Then pauses.

“No,” he says, “Take Eris in my place.” He then gently takes Eris by the shoulders and moves her forward until the angel’s hand touches her. There is a flash of golden light and Eris stumbles to the ground.

Celestial's Touch

“Goodbye my saviors,” the angel says and vanishes in a flash of golden light.

As the adventurers watch, Fenris turns to smile at his companions and then a puzzled look comes over his undead features. There is another flash of light and he vanishes.

“Fenris?” Eris sobs.

Lakima looks down at the clearly living young girl, “He has gone to a better place.”

“How can we be sure,” Aldus says, “Maybe he is imprisoned by the Lich Queen again.”

“I am sure,” Lakima says, “Now we need to get out of here.”

Grasshopper warns that he expects the Lich Queen to send her minions after them. But when they exit the mausoleum with Eris they are not stopped. They make their way through the city of the dead toward the slums. Along the way, Eris attracts the attention of the lost souls and the undead. Not disguised by a leaden bracelet like the rest of them she is like a beacon to the dead. The group forms up around her and Lakima casts Protection from Evil 10-foot-radius. This is enough to keep the undead that are bolder at bay and they make it to the bone gate and the river Styx.

The boatman and his black boat are waiting for them at the dock this time. Lakima pays for himself and Eris. The rest pay the toll and the boat sets out. The journey seems to take a few hours and they cross many rivers and planes before arriving at a familiar dock near the stairs to the land of the living.

“Can you teleport us out of here?” Grasshopper asks.

“I could only teleport myself,” Lakima says, “But the tomb is mainly full of traps and not creatures and we know where all of the traps are, it should not be too difficult.”

“I am not sure it would be wise to teleport out of the Underworld,” says Domago, “We should pass through the portal again to return, otherwise we may find we are ghosts and not among the living.”

The adventurers and Eris climb the long set of stone steps up to the portal leading to the chamber of pillars. All of them pass through without anything untoward happening. Eris clings closely to Eathwund. From the chamber, it is a short, careful trip through trapped hallways to the exit. In the distance, they see Cloudstealer gently swaying 30 feet up in the air.

“Ahoy on the ship,” Lakima yells.

After a few moments, August looks over the side and throws down a rope. The adventurers climb aboard. Aelshara is amazed by the flying ship.

“Where are you heading?” she says.

“Home to Edgerton,” Lakima tells her. Aelshara had visited Edgerton 120 years ago before being trapped in the mirror and she says she will join them. August tells them that they have been gone for eight days.