Session/Game: BD&D 6 Date: June 25, 2000

Campaign Date: Tul 1 to Sau 14 Imperial Year 468

Characters:

Feclar, elf, chaotic, level 4, Chuck F

Childeric of the Great Serpent: chaotic, cleric, level 3, henchman

Ulfsark, fighter, human, level 1, neutral, henchman

Strider, human, fighter, chaotic, level 5, Matt D.

Valeria, human, thief, chaotic, level 5,NPC (in absentia for Tiff D.)

Titus McNasty, gnome, level 4, chaotic, NPC

Gorbag, Blowhole, Ratbag and 12 other Orcs, chaotic, flunkies

5 bandits, chaotic, flunkies

Gildor, wood elf, neutral, level 2, NPC

Rodbert and Todbert, wood elf, neutral, level 1, henchmen to Gildor

Log:

Early one morning Feclar, Childeric, Ulfsark, Strider and Valeria left Mike’s Tavern in Fort Lester and were immediately attacked by 15 soldiers and 2 knights, led by Curate Maxwell from the Lawful Church of Bor. The party slew 11 of soldiers, captured one of the knights and drove off the curate and the rest. After questioning the knight, whom they then killed, they found that they had been accused of consorting with a chaotic priest of the dreaded Serpent God (true—i.e. Childeric) and for scheming to perform unholy sacrifices (false). Realizing the danger, they fled into the countryside back into the wild Melvek valley, abandoning their wagon and its goods. They felt quite bitter since they had just saved the village of Happy Dale and its church from the raids from the Abbey Savage only days earlier.

That night Strider sent Valeria back to Fort Lester to capture or interrogate one of the priests of Bor to find out who had informed against them and why. She, however, triggers a protective spell in the Church and did not return. Leaving them without further information.

Later, a stranger in brown robes approached their campsite. He entered and gave the secret signs of the Serpent God to Childeric and was welcomed. He identified himself as Gurgar the Wanderer and aided the party as best he could with healing spells. Gurgar listened to their story about the attack in Fort Lester and said:

“If you really want to get revenge on those sissy-boys you should try to find the Armory of Morpheus—I don’t know where it is, but I can tell you where to look for answers. The location was made secret by the Church of Bor. Go to the Monastery of Brud-Fullo, attack it and open up the forbidden stair to the crypts beneath. If you need a new base, I have two suggestions: “Bonesville” a hideout and trading post for brigands in the mountains or you can try to work with one of the wood elf clans, currently there is high anti-Imperial feeling and desire to start a new kingdom in the wilds. You know, I know someone else who may want to help you. If you go to Bonesville, go to Blind Pete’s and ask for Titus.”

He gave them a map showing the hidden location of Bonesville and the monastery, but he himself was gone by morning.

Quickly making their way to Bonesville, the party rested and re-supplied. They entered “Blind Pete’s” a tavern and flophouse which was run by a no-eyed Cyclops (named Blind Pete, obviously). There they asked the Cyclops if he knew Titus. Pete reached beneath the bar and pulled out a sack, containing Titus McNasty, a noted gnomish drunkard and adventurer. Strider paid Blind Pete for Titus’ bar tab, and so the gnome was released. They explained they were searching for a secret cache of weapons that would allow them to destroy Fort Lester. Titus agreed to join them since “Those bastards at Fort Lester let the men whom murdered my cousin Horny Bill go scot- free and I’ve wanted revenge for weeks now.”

Strider also recruited a band of 10 orc soldiers. He killed one of them almost immediately as an object lesson and warning for the rest. Their sergeant Gorbag was put in charge of them to insure their good behavior. It was then off though the mountains to the monastery.

The monastery itself was very small and located on top of a small mountain, accessible only by a 15-inch wide path. At the top of the path was a deadfall trap that would hurl a victim out into the void and down to the rocks below. Strider and Feclar tried to approach the entrance, but the monk on guard asked them “Do you seek Knowledge or Enlightenment” when Feclar responded ‘Knowledge” he was turned back and told to listen until he heard the sound of the growing mushroom. Strider later responded “Enlightenment:” and was told to go back and until he saw the “breeze on the breezeless day”. They tried to return several times with answers, but were turned back each and every time. At last they had Gorbag order one of the orcs “Ratbag” to go a head into the monastery, telling him that it was “perfectly safe.” Ratbag was crushed and hurled out onto the rocks below, but the rest of the party entered the monastery grounds and did battle and slew the 8 monks and their master. About half of the orcs were killed in the battle with the monks.

The party then discovered the sealed entrance to the crypt below. They traveled down and slew a black pudding, a living statue, several ghouls and 6 gargoyles (after a particularly savage battle in which all were wounded heavily and the rest of the orcs were lost). They discovered several treasures and faced several dangerous traps. One of these crushed an orc’s head, and another nearly flattened Titus McNasty. Returning to the surface, they discovered their horses had all disappeared from the lower campsite. Strider then traveled back to Bonesville alone to get supplies and more flunkies. He hired 5 bandits and 5 orcs (one of whom was the leader Blowhole, who constantly reminded everyone that he was “swift and strong”). While he was away and the party was resting in the monastery, a gray ooze slipped up from the crypt and killed Ulfsark in his sleep.

On their second trip into the crypt, the party discovered a magical fountain that healed some wounds and had various other magical effects on the party members. The mystic water however transformed the head of Strider into that of a sheep and caused Feclar to grow a thick growth of hair all around his body. They wasted a scroll of Dispel Magic and one of Polymorph other trying to restore Strider’s head. Moving on, they fought a grim battle against 3 Hell Hounds who blasted Childeric into a severe burn coma. The party fled from the crypt and went all the way back to Bonesville, in order to let Childeric rest and recover.

Feclar and Strider, leaving Titus and Blowhole (swift and strong) in charge, made a trip to the wood elves of the High Forest. The elves received them very warmly, since they too were alarmed that the humans in Fort Lester were expanding into the Melvek Valley and linking up with the dwarves to the West. After a few days, Halabrak, the clan chief, removed the sheep’s head curse from Strider, and the Hair curse from Feclar (at a price of course). An elf named Gildor and his followers Rodbert and Todbert joined Feclar agreed to join Feclar’s quest and traveled back to Bonesville with him.

In Bonesville, the orcs under Blowhole and Gildor and his elves reacted angrily to each others’ presence. Feclar and Strider convinced Gildor that the orcs were useful as cannon fodder in the quest (killing two birds with one stone). Strider bullied Blowhole into submission (although he and the other orcs kept making sheep noises behind Strider’s back).

On the third expedition into the crypt, the party discovered a large ax stuck into a stone. There was an inscription that read “For the love of god, don’t remove this ax.” The party was inclined to move on, but Blowhole insisted on taking the ax for himself. Everyone else withdrew to the hallway and Blowhole grabbed the ax. Immediately two demons leaped forth and tore Blowhole limb from limb and devoured him. The rest of the party rushed to the attack and eventually slew the demons, although all of the bandits were slain and many members suffered wounds.

In another room they found a mysterious altar stone behind 4 pillars. When Feclar touched the stone he vanished in a blast of light, replaced by an angry baboon. When Strider hurled the baboon against the altar it too vanished and was replaced by another baboon, which they killed. When the party tried to all touch the altar at once, Gildor and one of the orcs also vanished, replaced by monkeys. Later, the party found that Feclar, Gildor and the orc were trapped inside the pillars, swapped with baboons that had been there.

Venturing onwards, the party slew a wraith, two crystal statues and four more gargoyles. They then reached the resting place of the directions to the Armory of Morpheus. There was an ancient carved relief on the far wall and a set of carved footprints in front of the relief, which is of a man in profile with his ear clearly carved. There is a multi-lingual inscription that read:

Seek the Heads of the Followers if you would gain knowledge

Blessed is he who rules

Only call upon he who is blessed

Revelation comes upon the calling

After wasting huge amounts of time calling on themselves, piling up gargoyle heads and other useless things, they arrived at the answer. Titus McNasty made a few suggestions that allowed Strider to figure out that the “Heads of the Followers” meant the first letters of lines 2, 3 and 4 of the inscription ,i.e., BOR, the name of the god of the Lawful Church. Standing in the footprints and calling on Bor, Strider received the map to the location of the Armory. They then returned to the altar room and freed Feclar, Gildor and the orc from the pillars. They party, now consisting of Feclar, Childeric, Titus, Strider, Gildor, Rodbert, Todbert, and 3 orcs, returned to Bonesville.