After the devious arson involving the rival adventuring group 'The Falcons' and the Company of Crossed Swords' home, their Malinbois lodge, Roland Wolfric, Lord Zanzibar and High Cavalier of the Ouestmarche entreatied their Marias patrons for aid. In exchange for his services as a knight-errant, he asked that the Countess grant him a parcel of land upon which to rebuild the Company's home, and which to commence work on the mighty Chateau de Zanzibar!! But for right now, maybe just a little *stone* house would be nice. The Countess acquiesced, saying the ties between the Marais and the CoCS were overdue to be formalized, and that he should come back 'round in a few days to iron out the particulars.
And so, it was time to delve back into the Chateau de Ambreville to raise money for what would surely be new and costly construction bills. The life of an adventurer is so…adventurous.
Our heroes descended to the heretofore under-explored fourth level where they were immediately set upon by a great host of ghouls and flaming skeletons. Surrounding Martin, the flames from the skeletons' bones licked hither and yon, scorching the myrmidon terribly. Pritchard was set alight, and Cut Coutelain also suffered ghastly burns. Cloaks and robes were engulfed and doffed. Finally, the combined turning powers of Umberlee (Ja'Tubis), Seff (Audrey), and arcane might (Pritchard) drove the devils back, and the fighters reduced them to flinders with force of arms.
Healing was administered, and the Company pressed on. They entered another room, where a strange burn-ey slime fell upon them from above, etching Martin's magical platemail with cool-looking watery whorls. Martin did not, however, appreciate the less-cool-looking whorls of melting flesh the monster's tendrils impressed upon his flesh. Blades flashed in a panic, and the abomination was laid low. Now though, much of the party spells, healing, and hit points had been expended and they chose to repair topside to rest and heal for a day before re-delving.
After resting, the Company went back down to where they had left off and discovered a fiendish troll-type creature with a tentacle for a head. Pritchard sought to blast the creature with a lightning bolt, as he now possessed a "hammer", and every problem looked like a "nail", but the fighters impeded his line of sight. Roland was entangled by the head-tentacle and was beginning to feel its constriction, until Martin cleaved the tentacle with his mighty sword…uh…'Tentacle-Cleaver', or whatever, and he was set free. As Pritchard and Ja sifted through troll scat for gems, Cut carved the troll heart from the carcass and bagged it, assuming (correctly) it would be worth something.
Continuing on, our heroes entered a pillared room with a red and black marble checkerboard parquet of a floor inhabited by an incorporeal undead. Martin said 'Hi!" It said, "HSSSSSSS!" and drained him of two energy levels. Rude! Skeletons rose from great mounds of bones in the corners of the halls, and the battle began in earnest. The clerics destroyed the skellys with the powers of their gods, while the fighters chopped away at their ghostly enemy. Eventually all foes were defeated, though Martin was left again with a feeling of extreme peaked-ness, a sensation with which he is sadly all too familiar.
The Company decided to check one more room, and found a small storeroom filled wall to wall and floor to ceiling with furniture. While the halflings crawled through to see what lay within, a giant feathery limbed insect attacked Martin! Springing to his comrade's aid, Roland drove Yakutz into it's leathery body. Sadly, he did not recognize this beast as none other than a rust monster, the hide of which quickly eroded the shining patina of the eldritch partisan. While it remains a magically enchanted polearm, it's ability to grant a defensive bonus is now lost forever, and the mighty weapon is now simply +1.
Martin, finally driven over the edge by this turn of events, took to flight, and sprinted back to the surface with his companions in tow.
Losses and Loot
No casualties, other than a few experience levels and one secondary magic item power!
The party slew a dozen flaming skeletons, a half dozen ghouls, a Lurker-Above-type thing, a nyarlathotep-type troll, a dozen normal skeletons, a wraith, and a rust monster. They retrieved four gems, a small bronze statue, and various coinage..
XP 270 ish each
GP: 240 ish each