3rd Day of Harvester, CY 580 - Poking Around Dieg Manor in Verbobonc

Since we are playing an old-school Greyhawk campaign, using much of the original 1st & 2nd edition source material, the events of the original Fate of Istus module have been in play for some time, though our heroes haven't really been in the thick of it. It has been mostly plot elements crossing over into the other modules they are playing. Since the events of the module are part of the overall story, so I have weaved it into the background up until now. Since the party decided to go to Verbobonc this week, it was time to dive in.

We left off on the first day of Harvester when the party was finally reunited in Greyhawk. After a couple of days of getting reacquainted, the party decided to head to Verbobonc to see Lord Wilfrick about the former Temple of Elemental Evil, and the Temple of Thrithereon about Jarrus and his former squire's knighting. They chose horseback and the road as the best route, which, for lower level characters, would have been dangerous, but for the Badass Motherfuckers, it was an easy trip. Bandits could easily tell they should leave them alone and wandering monsters were no challenge. The entire trip took 14 days, during which Luapan and Cadwin were able to create food and water. Having clerics and druids and barbarians with outdoor skills in the party pretty much means I get to skip the Wilderness Survival Guide as a DM and just let travel happen. The players appreciate that, as our sessions are time constrained.

Verbobonc City Gate

As the party approach the city gate of Verbobonc, they could see a long line of merchants and other travelers trying to get into the city. It took 2 hours of waiting before they could get to the front, where they were informed that everyone entering the city had to submit to a "plague check." They were looking for signs of the Red Death, which has been plaguing the area. The check required a full strip down and examination by a cleric, which the party agreed to do without complaint (Pontus the barbarian actually thought it was fun). Once through the gates, it was late, and they decided to seek an inn and secure a room. They were able to nice inn called The Jewel of the Velverdyva and get two rooms for the night.

Jarrus immediately headed to the Temple of Trithereon, which was closed for the evening, but he put in word with a cleric that he was in town at the request of the high priest. He then returned to the inn and had dinner and enjoyed some entertainment, being sure to inform the tavern bard about their great deeds and offering to regale him with stories of their adventures as material for new songs. Pontus enjoyed a night of drinking and the company of several ladies, roping Luapan into being his "wingman" for the evening. It was an unlikely pairing, but it worked.

Cadwin decided to kick-back and use his listening skills to eavesdrop on conversations going on inside the inn. He heard a couple of local men complaining about their neighbor, a man named Carlan Dieg, who used to be their friend, but has become quite an unpleasant recluse recently, and letting his house fall into disrepair. "Dieg" was a name mentioned in a cryptic message that Jarrus has received in back in Greyhawk from a old man on the street. The full message, the party recalled, went like this:

"Are your ears a-prickle? Good! 

Then know that there are ways to win your victory before the son’s aware but be stealthy! 

Ask the neighbors, do not go knocking; for announcements now work against you! Dieg is the answer, for Dieg is dead, yet Dieg is not! That's the riddle, and yet there's more. For when are neighbors who were once friends no longer both yet both? Eyes can see yet be blind .... "

The group knows an adventure hook when it hits them in the face, and so they decided they would investigate this man, Dieg the next day after concluding some other business. So the next day, they first headed to the Temple of Trithereon. On the way, they saw alleyways full of sick and dying people - the Red Death. They also saw some cultists they have seen before. These cultists wore rags and had the symbol of Pholtus branded into their foreheads. In some cases, they were harassing people, and Jarrus put a stop to that, but in other cases, they seemed to be recruiting from the sick and dying folks, claiming they had the only cure. Some of the cultists claimed to have been stricken with the disease before they converted to the light, and could testify to healing power of Pholtus. It seemed to be working for their recruiting effort to a certain extent. At the temple, Jarrus made an appointment for 3 days from now to meet with the high priest and then went to Lord Wilfrick's castle and managed to get an audience with him scheduled in six day's time (using his credentials as a member of the church of Trithereon to smooth the process). The party then moved on to investigate Dieg.

They started the investigation with a house that was for rent next door, hoping to use it as a base of operation. The owner informed them that it had already been rented and would not provide any details about who rented it. Cadwin was able to use "Speak with Nature" to divine that there was an underground tunnel system (read: dungeon) under Dieg Manor. Physical scouting of the place showed that it was freshly, but hastily painted over, all of the windows were boarded shut and the house really was being neglected - with weeds growing everywhere and dust and cobwebs around the front. Based on some information they obtained from the neighbors, Dieg started acting strangely about 2 months ago, and while he has been rude to people when he is seen, for the most part, he is rarely seen at all.

The party then decided to scout the place from the inn across the street. They were able to get their nice rooms downgraded in order to move to the front of the building and get a view of the house. They then began watches that night, keeping an eye on what was going on. During Sarril's watch, he saw a figure in black and red robes - colors often associated with evil clerics, approach the front door and go inside. The party decided not to wait any longer and go immediately inside the manor.

Choosing a place on the north side of the house, Sarril cast Passwall in order to get the party inside while avoiding the front door. They saw a bedroom on the other side of the wall, and surprised a sleeping merchant (Cadwin recognized his voice as a patron of the inn earlier) who immediately woke up and drew a knife to defend himself. Jarrus and Pontus were too fast, however, and they cut the man down before he could act. After searching the body and recovering very little, the party

headed west, where a group of six men with scimitars had prepared an ambush, having been woken up but the noise in the next room a few minutes ago. Jarrus and Pontus swept through and took out these men with almost no effort. The party was convinced now that the man in the other room was no mere merchant, and this home was being used as a base of operations for some nefarious activity. They searched the rest of the first level and the upper level, finding no other people or monsters. Pontus, however, found a golden skull under a pillow in the master bedroom - very similar to the artifact in the Temple of Elemental Evil, though without the gem slots. When he uncovered it, he, Sarril and Jarrus were forced to avert their gaze as they could not stand to look at it. Luapan was so overwhelmed by it that he ran from the room. Cadwin seemed unaffected, and so he wrapped it up in a pillowcase and put it his bag.

The only place left to go was down a staircase, and so down they went. After going down about 50 feet, they came to a secret door. Pontus opened the door and confronted by a raging war dog standing in front of a trash heap. The dog was clearly angry and starving and ready to attack.

And that is where we left off. It is about 3:30 am in the early morning of 19th Day of Harvester, CY 580

21st Day of Goodmonth, CY 580 - The Falcon Attacks, Part 2

Trigger warning: The following blog entry describes a TPK (Total Party Kill)

When we left off, the Falcon had just landed in the rear (northeast) corner of the temple. Jarrus, Janziduur and their crew were at the northwest corner. As the fight began, Jarrus led his team east toward the Falcon in order to close the distance. Unfortunately, the Falcon was holding her action, waiting for that exact move. In response, she cast an Enlarge spell on the balcony over the group's head. The sudden change in size caused the balcony to collapse, bringing the massive stone structure

The Falcon - and her many forms

down on the party, causing extensive damage and trapping Jarrus and Janziduur underneath tons of rubble. The mage who was standing on the balcony was even less lucky, as the damage caused by falling into and among the rubble was too much for his frail body to handle.

Luckily, a couple of the lower-level clerics were able to make a save to jump clear of the collapse. On the next round, despite Jarrus and Janziduur both having 18 strength, they could not make the rolls necessary to free themselves. Miraculously, however, one of the lower-level clerics with them was able to make a Bend Bars roll and free Jarrus, who immediately drank one of his two potions of healing (the other was smashed in the fall). But the Falcon wasn't done. As the group struggled to free itself from the rubble, the Falcon followed up with a Cloudkill spell, hoping to finish off anyone who was left. Everyone, including the lower level clerics, all made their saves as they finished freeing themselves.

At this point, the Falcon was forced to turn her attention south, as a Talasek, Luapan, and their clerical crew was charging north to intercept her. The Falcon saw Talasek's face and was horrified, believing him to be be Talasek's grandfather who had taken part in imprisoning her so long ago. In response, she unleashed her most devastating spell - Death Spell, which killed the clerics, including Luapan. But Talasek continued forward to intercept her.

In the meantime, Sarril was out front dealing a mage, two priests, and several cultists by himself while everyone else focused on the Falcon. But the most fearsome of the enemies appeared moments later. After having killed the mage on east balcony, a flying magic user soon showed up to give Sarril some trouble. The mage on the south balcony came back out to assist, as did the mage on the west balcony. The front of the temple soon became an epic magic battle, with lightning bolts, magic missiles, cones of cold and ice storms flying from every direction. The two clerics were soon dispatched, but the two mages were protected by Minor Globes of Invulnerability, limiting what the defending magic users could use against them.

Whoever this new threat was, however, he seemed to be able to take a lot of punishment. After trying, and failing, to kill the mage on the south balcony with magic, he flew over in a rage, raked the mage once with a clawed hand, the grabbed him around the throat as he drained the life away from the hapless wizard. That's when Sarril realized that this man was no mere magic user, but a vampire as well. In response, Sarril pulled out a scroll of Chain Lightning and read it, shooting a 16-die lightning bolt at the mage on the ground, killing him instantly. The chain lightning the arced to vampire now on the balcony, doing substantial damage and putting him near death, but not quite killing him. Since the original target was now dead, the spell ended as it had no more targets to arc to. This severely limited the affect the devastating spell, but it did allow Sarril to reduce the fight down to one enemy, buying him a few more rounds.

Back at the rear of the temple, Nestor Morden and his City Watch guards moved in on the Falcon, and protected her with a phalanx, proving what the party already suspected about his intentions. Talasek started a fight directly with Nestor Morden, knowing he would have to cut through him to get to the enemy. This bought the Falcon a few more rounds to cast spells. Her first spell was Evard's Black Tentacles, to the west, to try to stop the approach of Jarrus and Janziduur. The spell was effective in that it killed the remaining clerics, and slowed down Jarrus, who had to cut at tentacles to free Janziduur. Jarrus had Janziduur cast Silence 15' Radius on him so that when he moved close to the Falcon, it This bought the Falcon enough time to transform back into a bird and fly to the south, giving her space to unleash more spells. As Talasek turned to rush at her from the south, the Falcon unleashed a lightning bolt at him, though he was able to save for half damage end keep coming. In the meantime, Jarrus and Janziduur finished off the guards as Jarrus rushed at the Falcon and Janzduur took cover behind a stone wall in order to use Spiritual Hammer.

Soon, Jarrus and Talasek were both on the Falcon and, due to the silence, she was unable to cast most spells on her own. Her only move left was to use a Lightning Bolt she had stored in a Ring of Spell Storing, which she was able to hit both Jarrus and Talasek with. Both saved, and since Jarrus had just recently been healed by Janziduur, he was able to survive. The Falcon took some brutal hits and was barely hanging on to life when she turned into a bird once again and flew up to the east balcony to escape the Silence spell. From this vantage point, she was confident she would be able to finish off the troublesome melee fighters below.

Meanwhile, at the front of the temple, Sarril, with only a few hitpoints left, was having a showdown with the vampire, who seemed equally wounded and barely holding on to (un)life. Realizing that the vampire could attack him and potentially drain as many as four levels per round, Sarril put up a Mirror Image spell to protect himself. In response, the vampire used a Wand of Frost to hit him with a Cone of Cold. Sarril saved for half damage, which put him a -6 hit points, dropping him to the ground.

The vampire then lowered himself to the ground and started toward Sarril's body (which, thanks to his otherworldly familiar, was actually regenerating). Talasek, seeing this, began to rush at the vampire, forcing him to unleash his most devastating spell yet, which he had been holding in reserve. The spell was his own Chain Lightning, which he cast at Talasek. The bolt arced through Talasek, Jarrus, Janziduur and the Falcon, killing all of them utterly and completely.

The most tragic part about this TPK is that the vampire wasn't even interested in doing it - but self-preservation when facing down a paladin was more important. Once everyone else was dead, he approached Sarril on the ground, who was laying there drifting in and out of consciousness. Expecting to have his life forces drained, Sarril was surprised when the vampire reached down and grabbed Sarril's Bag of Holding, reached inside, and pulled out a bundled up cloak. As he unwrapped the cloak to reveal the black Ebony Skull of Iuz (which has the power to summon the fiend), he said "I'm not here to kill you. The time will come soon when you will need to call upon my master for help. When that day comes, I want you to be prepared." He then placed the skull down on Sarril's chest before grabbing the Amulet of Proof Against Detection and Location and ripped it off of Sarrils neck, saying "You won't need this anymore."

As he did this, Sarril could see what looked like a purple and gray dragon flying toward the temple. As a final act, the vampire cast Banish at Sarril's familiar and scoring the extremely unlikely number needed to penetrate its magic resistance. With that, Krek blinked away, sent back to Concordant Opposition - not dead, but far enough away to be useless to Sarril. The vampire looked surprised and proud of himself before teleporting away.

Along with the dragon came Derider Fanshen, Constable of Greyhawk and cleric of St. Cuthbert, along with a large contingent of the City Watch. Soon Eritai emerged from the temple and began using her Rod of Resurrection to successfully bring everyone back to life (with the exception of the lower level clergy). The dragon was soon revealed to be Mizaab, the mage who originally imprisoned

Mizaab Zalen - Greyhawk Dragon

the Falcon, who is also a Greyhawk Dragon - the very same one that intercepted Jarrus and Sarril when they first entered the city. He thanked the party for permanently defeating the Falcon, acknowledging his mistake in believing that her previous entrapment could be permanent. Derider also thanked the party for their service to the city. She had long suspected corruption within the city watches ranks but was unable to get support from the Mayor or the Captain of the Watch to do anything about it. Nestor Morden, who used a Ring of Mind Shielding to hide his alignment from Derider, now provided proof of the traitors. Sarril gave her the Ring of Truth that the party had previously recovered, which would empower Derider to do an even better job in her role as Constable.

Over the next few days, the party assisted in clean-up efforts and divided the magic items they found between themselves and the Temple of St. Cuthbert. They discovered that the Falcon's shapechanging abilities were due to a Collar of Change (a Ring of Change enlarged into a collar) and that the Falcon's true form was that of a Naga. As a Naga has no hands, this severely limited her spellpower, so she used the collar to take human form, thus advancing to become a 12th level mage.

Two of the church's paladins returned, Bartholomew and Torval Mishka, both of whom had been fighting in the war up north. They told the story of how a black tower suddenly appeared outside of Admunfort and started blasting the enemy with spellpower, devastating their ranks enough that they were able to mount a charging offensive and break the siege. They could not say for certain that the war is over, but the Shield Lands have the upper hand at the moment, and are able to pull their armies back together, though the countryside has been lain to waste, with crops burned, so it will be a long and slow recovery. They expressed frustration that Furyondy never sent its forces to help its ally, to which Jarrus responded that they will be visiting there soon and plan to do something about that.

Finally, Janziduur informed Jarrus that her superiors in Verbobonc will not grant her the authority to bestow any knighthoods, but that the high priest of Tithereon has requested Jarrus to visit personally for evaluation. It seems that there was some skepticism over the story involving the Tarrasque that the church wants to verify before they deem him worthy of a knighthood. She warned that a title granted by the church may be more than just an honorific - that it may come with expectations. Jarrus agreed to go to the temple in Verbobonc and discuss the matter there.

And so it soon came to be the first day of Harvester, CY 580, on the Feast of Ralishaz, that a merchant ship came into the city carrying Pontus, Cadwin and Cassius. They arrived in time for the "ceremony" - whatever that was supposed to be. What adventures await the now reunited party? We shall soon find out. . .