The heroes continue to search the keep and adjoining star tower, soon they come upon
a room with an auspicious skull set upon an altar. It has gems embedded in each
eye socket as well as eight gemstone teeth.
The gemmed skull
The heroes rightly suspect a trap but are also unafraid. Only Mandraiv and Trinia
cower in the corridor outside while everyone enters the room and searches.
After a short time of searching Gritt can no longer resist and picks up the
skull. As expected it comes to live and everyone quickly moves to destroy it.
The heroes manage to significantly crack and chip the skull within inches of
breaking but not before it lets out a baleful wail. The sound sends shivers
through the souls of many of the heroes as it begins to leech the life out of
people. Most resist the dark magic with the exception of Slyvania and Hellious
who die.
It is the last act of evil for the skull
and it is quickly destroyed.
With two dead; the heroes withdraw again.
They are forced to seek resurrection magic and the nearest place is Kaer Maga,
The City of Strangers. With the aid of a windwalk spell, the heroes split up
and send a select few to the city. In a matter of hours the Hellious and
Slyvania are resurrected.
They also take the time to sell loot and do
some magical shopping before they return early the next day to continue their
assault on Scarwall.
In the morning, Sol uses a dispel good
spell to free his evil counter part, the Shadowcount Sol and the heroes
continue. They discover the gloom haunting Scarwall has left and that they can
now access extra dimensional magic such as summoning and teleport.
The chained spirit .. again
The heroes choose to avoid facing the
chained spirit and instead explore the startower. They gain access but find
nothing inside except for empty rooms. They surmise that the chained spirit
must be slain, and so they decide to face it once more.
The battle was anticlimactic. It had been
severely weakened after the lifting of the scarwall curse and was quickly
destroyed, along with several wraith guards.
The Bat Man
When the heroes return to the startower
they find that new rooms had opened up and they descend into its lower depths
until they comes to a large room with a blue mist covered bit. Waiting for them
is huge beast of black inky darkness in a vaguely batlike form. It is invisible
but several of the heroes have ways of seeing the invisible and therefore are
not surprised by its presence.
The inky black form speaks telepathically
to all, asking which of them wishes to become the Chosen. Watson without
hestitation steps forwards and offers himself. The beast asks once more if he
wishes to be the chosen and again he agrees.
Watson says I do
In a blink of any eye, Watson is gone. The
beast then says that he has been sent to Zon Kuthon where he will be converted
into one of their faithful and find eternal service. He then offers both the
Shadowcount Sol and Laori the chance to see the realm of the Midnight Lord and
the possibility to aid in the indoctrination of their latest recruit.
Laori gleefully accepts and both the beast
and Laori depart, shifting the planes to realm of night.
The rest are left in stunned silence
(though some have big smirking grins). Conjecture between the heroes reaches a
consensus that Watson had thought that he would receive the fabled blade
Zerithial and had therefore quickly accepted.
Let us just say that Watson’s free willed
life was bookended by horrible enslavement.
Nevertheless the heroes are hardened by
their adventuring lifestyle and forge on. Descending the pit covered in blue
mist. It is magical trap of sorts, which distorts space and propels those that
descend into the ground with frightening velocity.
However the heroes are made of sterner
stuff and easily reach the bottom of the bit.
The children of Rovagug
There they find some underground tunnels
and eventually a vast cave where there is an underground lake with a small encampment
of igloos made of rock next to it.
Here they are attacked by nightmarish four
armed creatures. They attack with great verocity and strength, but like all
powerful melee combatants with a bit of tactical bottle the heroes quickly gain
the upper hand.
With the curse of Scarwall lifted, Mandraiv
could finally use his summoning abilities which he put to good effect;
summoning a pride of celestial lions that ripped through the alien monsters.
Afterwards Mandraiv sent the lions in the lake to bait an potential beasts in
the lake.
They did not disappoint, a huge beast of
seaweed, mud and bone rose out of the lake to fight the heroes. It was powerful
but not strong enough to survive the onslaught of the heroes. The beast soon
fell…
| Encounter | Grit | Helious | Mandraiv | Sparrowhawk | Sol | Watson |
| Pre-session | 187,650 | 180,350 | 194,200 | 181,500 | 184,300 | 182,750 |
| Level | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| demilich | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 |
| 2 zombies, 4 skeletons | 188 | 188 | 188 | 188 | 188 | 188 |
| 8 z, 6 sk | 482 | 482 | 482 | 482 | 482 | 482 |
| chained spirit and wraiths | 11100 | 11100 | 11100 | 11100 | 11100 | 11100 |
| lifting the curse | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 |
| The nightwing | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 | 6400 |
| Gugs | 7680 | 7680 | 7680 | 7680 | 7680 | 7680 |
| water beast | 10240 | 10240 | 10240 | 10240 | 10240 | 10240 |
| Chief Tea Maker | 550 | 1100 | ||||
| Total | 237,090 | 229,240 | 243,090 | 231,490 | 233,190 | 231,640 |
