Saralas: Session 70

21 Elient, Ythryn, Morning

In the First Tower

• We are in the first tower, Karthos hasn't recovered
• Baerwin, with Karthos in tow, went up the stairs into the main room of the tower
• There are 6 magen in the room, staring at the party
• "Do we have any way to help Karthos?" I ask. Karthos responds with wild and creepy laughter
• The magen are not doing anything but staring at us; they appear to be alive
• I search the room for any information about the hammer and anvil I can find, but I find no clues as to its purpose.
  • The hammer, laying on the anvil, seems to call out
• Korag casts greater restoration on Karthos, he appears to be back to himself
• I recognize these creatures as magen, a construct created by a wizard, and when one is killed its body disappeared in a burst of harmless fire. It follows its orders and when orders are complete it is capable of returning to rest and can basically sit forever. Alternatively, it will follow its orders effectively forever.
• I think these things may be ordered to defend the room, or the wizard, or the anvil, and I caution against disturbing anything.
• Resda asks Professor Skant if it can read the inscription on the ceiling. He insultingly answers:
  • "First, shield thy heart with a wand from the Nether Oak"
  • That species of oak was cultivated by the Netherese and often decorated their stuff
• Skant also says this looks to be an anvil of disjunction, and could be used to destroy magical objects
• The wizard's body is mauled and broken, and from the walls it looks like a huge creature reached in and punched through the wall.
• Karthos moves to search the wizard's skeleton, and the magen appear to come more to life.
• They begin moving towards Karthos, and appear menacing
• I aim and fire two arrows quickly at the construct nearest to Karthos
• Baerwin runs over and grabs the hammer. He later recounts that it spoke to him "Bring me your items of power and together we shall destroy them"
• The magen move to attack Karthos and Korag with lightning grasps.
• They round on Baerwin, perhaps because he took the hammer
• They take down Baerwin and Karthos and appear to become inert again
• Min misty steps over to Korag and casts invisibility on him
• As soon as Korag disappears, the magen resume their original positions
• Korag, invisible, drags Baerwin downstairs
• I ask Resda and Min if they can detect magic. Korag apparently came back, still invisible. He drags Karthos off to heal him as well.
• About this time we hear huge footsteps of what sounds like a giant outside.
• I go over to the mage to carefully look for any sign of a book, or journal, or wand, or anything.
• The footsteps sound like they are getting closer, and a shadow flickers in the window of the tower
• I move over by the window, out of view from outside
• Min and Resda can clearly see the window being obscured by a huge eyeball, and it does appear to be a tomb tapper. We hear a huge sniffing sound, like a dog. I move quickly and quietly towards the stairs, keeping low.
• The giant is peering into the tower but otherwise not taking any action.
• I recall that netherese arcanists created these creatures. They stand over 20 feet tall and possess a lust for magical items, and have an insane hatred for non-human spellcasting creature. They can dig through earth and use their hammers to blow through walls. They can absorb water, eat rocks, and more. The netherese sent them to the underdark to destroy their enemies.
• Other creatures targeted include drow, mind flayers, deurgar
• We make our way downstairs, and I wonder out loud if the mage was killed by tomb tappers. "It was obvious, Skant says, the mage was killed by a tomb tapper, probably after he became undead"
• "This is what happens when the brutes turn on you," Skant tells Resda.
• "You don't hear the hammer?" Baerwin asks.
• "You don't hear the daggers?" Min replies.
• I ask Skant about the Netherese turning themselves undead. He thinks probably a number of them have, as the only way to survive. I'm not so sure that's a good tradeoff.
• Baerwin asks if we want to lure the tomb tapper in to fight the magen. "No!" says Resda with force. I am surprised, given what the others told me about her idea to bring the Remhoraz up only a few hours earlier.
• Meanwhile Min has headed upstairs. Resda follows, muttering something about daggers. Baerwin follows. We hear a bellowing roar from upstairs and the tower starts to shake, things are falling from the ceiling.
• Baerwin, Resda, and Min are upstairs. Here is what they told me happened:
  • The magen were fighting the tomb tapper
  • Baerwin tried to use the distraction of the tomb tapper to take the hammer. The moment he touched the hammer the magen turned from the tomb tapper to him. He dropped the hammer and ran, full speed past me out the tower door
  • The magen were attacking the tomb tapper nonstop as the tower started crumbling all around them.
• Seeing the way this tower is shaking I worry it will fall. I make my exit and look for Korag and the others. Resda also exits in quite a hurry. Min comes too but she is unhappy. The tomb tapper and magen are still fighting.
• I ask Skant about the Nether Oak wands. He believes them to be fairly rare, and objects of great power. "Can we find them on one of the city's mages?"
• Skant suggests a wand store. He also suggests that the Great Resda could probably make one.
• We quietly discuss going to search for a wand or keep searching towers. I suggest the wand sounded like something we needed to break the barrier, and remind everyone that Avarice is coming. While we talk, the tower slides off the tower and narrowly misses us. We start moving.

The Museum

• We travel warily through the town east of the tower, bickering. Min keeps looking back over her shoulder, and Baerwin also appears distracted. We come to a large building with a domed roof. A palatial octagonal building looms over us, crowned with a palatial gold roof.
• Skant speaks up, recognizing this as the museum.
• Min tugs the door open. The door slams open, making a clattering noise throughout the building.
• Baerwin walks in. He becomes aware of six foul creatures that are scattered throughout the ruins and moving towards the doorway.
• He runs back out, describes what he saw, and Resda shoves the door shut.
• Min wants to fight. Karthos says "well, we are here to learn". He hears the daggers say "no, we are here to fight."
• Skant informs us they are undoubtably nothics, twisted remains of wizards. He doubts much of value to our quest is in the museum.
• "Were these people evil?" I ask.
• We decide to keep moving for now. Min appears distracted.

On to the Second Tower

• A tower rises before us, straight as an arrow. A faint light shines from the tower's highest window, and hairline cracks creep up its wall like ivy.
• Unlike the first tower, there are no obvious carvings, it is a plain tower.
• Min and Karthos both say there don't appear to be traps.
• Baerwin opens the door and starts heading up the stairs.
• The tower's interior walls are sculpted with impressions of human forms, as if they are pressing against the walls from within.
• There are no people in the room, but there is a toppled stone statue on the floor, and an inscription on the wall that appears to be damaged.
• Baerwin digs around and picks up a small bag and stashes it away. It contains 9 beans and weighs several pounds.
• I mention Jack and the Beanstalk, which confuses Baerwin. It was a story I told my daughter when she was little, when she was struggling to go to sleep. A fairy tale, but magic beans could be real.
• The inscription is written in draconic. "Eight, stand firm in thy circle of death, and consume–". The last word is missing, and appears damaged. Resda thinks it is probably "poison". I confirm this with her and write poison down with a question mark. She may be right.
• Karthos goes to investigate the statue. It appears to be made of adamantium, and is *extremely* lifelike. It is a female mage, who appears to be frozen in a moment where she appears to be casting a spell.
• "I hate to admit it but the 'greatest wizard in the world' may be right."
• "You mean sorcerer," Skant says sarcastically. I walk out the room and down the stairs without looking back.
• I hear later from the others that this appears to be Methrala?, the greatest transmutation wizard. It appears a spell backfired.
• Having recalled the story I used to tell Elodie when she was a child, I sit on the steps and sketch a little drawing of Baerwin climbing a vine up to the heavens in my journal. I draw a giant tomb tapper in a castle in the clouds as the giant from the story.
• I hear them talking about trying to restore the person. I call up the stairs "Do you see the walls in here? You think this person would help?"
• I ask how people are feeling and suggest that we can take a short break if they want to patch themselves up a little after the last encounter.
• Later that day Korag quietly told me that he heard Min's daggers in his mind. "Bring her back so we can kill her." He was talking about the wizard in this room.
• Now I can hear the daggers too. I am worried about the daggers.
• "Daggers, if you see an albino tiefling you can stab them." We leave, and the daggers are unhappy.

21 Elient, Ythryn, Afternoon

The Meditation Dome

• On the way, we stop in to look at a nearby building in one of the towns. It looks like a domed open sided building supported by tall columns.
• Four basalt columns support a huge mirrored dome, reflecting Ythryn's tallest spires and the cavern's stalactites. The dome is multi-hued. Frozen human figures float, cross legged and serene.
• Skant says this may be the hall of weightless wonder, and was used for meditation.
• I step in and float into the air and try to meditate. I succeed, gaining the project image spell while I meditate.
• I cast project image, and another me appears, who can move and interact normally. The image has my hit points and can move and interact with things, but it cannot attack.