G208: The Tomb of Feria of the Northlands

Date: January 16, 2017
DM: Quendalon
PCs: Bouvier de Flanders, "Cut" Coutelain, Donovan, Pritchard de Marais, Roland de Marais
NPCs: Munda, Thymli, 12 of Roland's men-at-arms

Summary

Late in the previous year, Pritchard de Marais had hired the mercenary Aimery du Bois to investigate the movement of orcs in the mountains north and east of Malinbois. Now Timothee, last survivor of the expedition, returned with news that many tribes of orcs had gathered to attack the barbarian lands north of the mountains, and that both demons and an enormous scarlet dragon had been seen in orcish territory. Combining this report with information obtained from a charmed orc, according to whom the orcs were united under Ulgron, a mighty shaman who had cast down the temples of the orcish gods in their holy place of Grok-Nar and replaced their worship with that of demons, Pritchard decided that further investigation of the orcish menace was more important than digging deeper into the Chateau.

Two orcish sites were located on Timothee's map. One appeared to be a holy site to the orcs. On the way there, the Company encountered Marlo, another survivor of Aimery du Bois' ill-fated expedition, who corroborated much of Timothee's report. With her aid, the orcish temple was quickly found — along with a score of visiting orcs from the Corpse Flower tribe. Instead of attacking, Pritchard opened negotiations with the orcish priests. Discovering that they followed the old orc gods, Pritchard — having entered the temple alone — made a blood offering before the jeweled statue of the orc god Hokokor of the Burning Eyes, and forged a pact to work with the priests and their followers against Ulgron and his demon-swayed minions.

Pritchard then realized that the Company was just a couple of days away from the tomb of Feria of the Northlands, a site marked on a treasure map he had acquired on a previous adventure. The Company made their way there with little difficulty. The wooded burial mound was infested with gnolls, but the creatures scattered before the party's superior numbers rather than fighting.

Inside the mound, Pritchard dominated the will of a skeletal gnoll and sent it ahead as a stalking-horse. The Company then proceeded to trigger several traps, albeit without any real harm done. Bypassing a room filled with a dozen armored skeletons, they found two mortared-shut stone doors at the back of the tomb. Unsealing one door revealed a red-bearded draugr eager to destroy the living! Worse, as they fought the undead creature, the other door ground open and a second, blond-mustachioed draugr fell upon the party's rear! Enhanced by Pritchard's haste magic, the party destroyed both of their foes, but poor Marlo perished in the fight, never to return home.

On the way out of the tomb, they found that the dozen skeletal warriors they'd passed before had gathered to block their path! But a single fireball annihilated the undead host. They made their way out and headed back to civilization, easily dispersing a score of orcs who thought to interfere with their progress.

The Company hauled out a pair of locked coin-filled chests and dragged them on their way back to civilization, opening one per day with a knock spell. One chest contained another map, this one indicating that Feria's mystic arm-ring had been lost in an underground labyrinth — apparently the very same lair that Aimery's expedition showed as an orc lair! But the Company was tired and treasure-laden; they returned home, setting aside that investigation for another day.

Losses and Loot

The party defeated two mummies, twelve skeletal warriors, and twenty orcs. Treasures retrieved included a gold necklace, a copper bracelet, a silver vambrace, an electrum pendant, a gold ring, a silver brooch, 4000ep, 7000cp, and a treasure map.

For monsters defeated and treasures retrieved, each PC gained 1022gp and 615xp.


Prev: Last Call for Charles le Donne

Next: Seeking Feria's Arm-Ring

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