G122: Two Trapped Chests

Date: May 10, 2012
PCs: Ja'Tubis, "Cut" Coutelain, Roland (Lord Zanzibar), Knorr Bremse, Hannah Darrowkin, Barnaby Flanders, Azure (deceased), and Pritchard Hood.
…and telephone consultation of Robert Hazart!
DM: Quendalon

Summary

For a week the Company spoke of mapping and exploration. During that time several company members accomplished other matters mundane and significant:

  • Pritchard acquired 20 suits of plate mail and a wagon to carry them to the Chateau
  • Roland purchased entry-level jewelry such as a noble would wear, spending thousands of gold
  • Cut Coutelaine had made a special gold-studded silk measuring cord for use in dungeon exploration; also, with Ja'Tubis' help managed to find a vendor of "pets" in Glantri city who sold him a collection of angelic, white-furred cats
  • Barnaby managed to acquire a huge tract of land, sight unseen, for all his cash on hand

A notable rumor: several senior Glantrian wizards have been killed in the war recently. How might this affect the demand for magical items, services, and practitioners?

The Company traveled to the Chateau, where we consulted with the Orcs. Cut gave his collection of cats to the recuperating Hell Hound — having learned from Robert Hazard that Hell Hounds most like to consume angellic cats. Pritchard offered the suits of plate to the orcs, which was well-received. The company was blessed by the orcs.

Ja'Tubis, consumed with his maps and theories about how the group could best get into the depths of the huge, ruined pile, led the group into the Chateau. We entered through Cezarine's Tower and descended to one of the two-story rooms on the second level. There the party encountered a carrion worm. While the worm was quickly dispatched, Roland was paralyzed by the creature and the party retreated to a nearby room to recuperate. The room proved to house a giant lizard, which was overcome almost as quickly as the carrion worm. After an hour, with Roland recovered, the party returned to their intended path - only to find that the carrion worm, now carrion itself, had attracted a pack of eight ghouls.

Three ghouls were slain and five turned, but again Roland (and Cut) were paralyzed. The party retreated to their safe-room and waited another hour for movement to return.

On the third try we made it to the next set of descending stairs and began to explore a new level… only to be attacked from behind by the remaining five ghouls. Azure successfully hid in the shadows and avoided them, and the rest of the party managed to slay two more and turn the others. Eventually the last ghouls returned and were slain.

Exploration led us to a locked door, which we could only open by agency of a hand axe, hacking away the lock from the rest of the door. It opened into a well-appointed room containing a living statue. The statue insisted it was the property of one "Master Orius" and refused us entry. After some clever negotiations by Roland were unsuccessful, Pritchard attempted to turn the statue to flesh using his staff. Sadly the magic did not work, and the statue used Pritchard as a projectile, ejecting Pritchard, Cut, and Roland from the room.

Cut and Hannah sped into the room and battled the statue to destruction. The room was searched and thoroughly dismantled, yielding a trove of furniture, several items of furniture and a chest to be opened later. The party was burdened with so much that we decided to retreat and Ja'Tubis led us back to the main courtyard of the Chateau, where we stored the loot in Pritchard's wagon and rested.

The next morning the rejuvenated party returned to Cezarine's Tower and the bowels of the Chateau.

Ja'Tubis again led the party through the maze of stairwells and passageways back to the new area of exploration. Moving east from the stairway brought the party to a new room. It proved to be the lair of a sinister new abomination: a giant spider that had tentacles extending from its body. The creature attacked as we entered the room. Pritchard cast stinking cloud at the creature, forcing it to flee. Unfortunately it grabbed Cut and dragged him away. Knorr and Hannah followed in chase. Hannah managed to slay the creature with help from Pritchard and Roland, but Knorr was overcome by the cloud and spent five minutes being sick and coughing.

The spider-thing was dead, but the battle was not yet over. The noise attracted a group of goblins led by a sturdy hobgoblin, and they fell on the party from behind. In the ensuing melee the enemy was defeated, but the party took several wounds. Notably, Azure successfully back-stabbed a goblin.

Exploring the room revealed a secret door that led to a small set of rooms perhaps belonging to Miranda. What appeared to be a magical workshop was looted and a small room containing a demon “statue” inside a pentagram was examined. Finally we searched a bedroom and looted it of treasures also.

It was here that tragedy struck: the chest in the bedroom was trapped, and Azure was struck dead by lighting when he attempted to open it.

The chastened party collected their loot and retraced their steps out of the dungeon.

Enemies Defeated
Carrion Crawler
Giant Lizard
8 Ghouls
Living Statue
Giant Spider with tentacles
A hobgoblin
4 goblins

Treasure Liberated

  • a "handfull" of silver pieces (from the groin pouches of the goblins)
  • a crappy silver bracelet (from hobgoblin)
  • 2 large, fine candelabras
  • A large rug (from the half-octagonal room)
  • Ceremonial sword, bent by backstab maneuver
  • 2 large portraits of a stern but handsome woman (possibly Miranda?)
  • A needle-trapped chest (from Master Orius' room)
    • containing Orius's spellbook
    • Orius's Spellbook: Detect Magic, Halt Missiles, Hold Portal, Light, Ray of Enfeeblement, Read Magic, Hypnotic Stare, Levitation, Wizard Lock
  • A trapped chest that slew Azure (from the secret rooms)
    • containing a pouch of coins, a scroll of protection from magic, a silver medallion of the Ambrevill insignia, and Miranda's spellbook
    • Miranda's Spellbook: Floating Disc, Magic Missile, Read Languages, Read Magic, Sleep, Detect Invisibility, ESP, Mirror Image, Web, Dispel Magic, Lightning Bolt
  • Selection of blank papers, quills, ink jars from bedroom
  • Fine ivory and silver comb
  • Rug from Master Orius's room
  • Small but fancy wooden box
  • Gold medallion (of a minor saint)
  • Silver ring set with a jet-black stone
  • 3 silver charms or baubles (1 smiley face and two magical charms with flat expressions)
  • End-table, small, round
  • Desk
  • Armoire
  • Bed
  • Selection of well kept clothes from armoire, including boots (fine, enchanted for "warmth or fecundity", magically resize), tunics, doublets, trousers.
  • Collection of spell ingredients and components from what might be Miranda's workroom, able to "fund" 5000gp of spell research.

Losses/Loot

Azure the Adventurer passed away, victim of a trapped chest. The surviving party members were each allotted 100xp and 234gp.


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