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Post by venger on May 20, 2015 11:12:57 GMT -5
Following the mass exodus of freed souls from the haunted Charnel House, through the very Gates of the Dead, our heroes once more find themselves beyond the Veil---
Among the reasons many adventurers choose to end their days in the cannibal-ridden, hurricane savaged isles of the south is the immense distance it puts between them and the land beyond the Black Water. The Black Water is a vast sea, filled with black viscous water that sits still as death. Nobody but a fool would willingly cross the Black Water, save for the strange men who sail the black arks, but many fools have crossed these waters in search of a lost love or a secret taken to the grave, for beyond the Black Water and its grey shores lies the icy Land of the Dead.
Though many a desperate man has sailed the Black Water and set foot on its noisome shores, only a handful have returned to speak of what they say, and then only on their deathbeds. Some sages have such a testament in their possession to wonder over in the bright light of day. The scrolls tell of jagged peaks and white forests, spongy lakelands and black rivers, of barges stacked with corpses and a brisk trade in souls. Of the men who live in this land, they have been called “the Beyonders,” little is written or known, for they are not a talkative people and one does not easily extract themselves from their hospitality.
What then, wanderer of worlds, plunderer of tombs, slayer of dragons, do you seek in the land beyond the Black Water? A departed friend or lover, an enemy who took the ultimate escape to avoid your wrath or a secret sealed behind the shriveled lips of a dead man? More importantly, how do you plan to return?
The Land Beyond the Black Water is both of the mortal world and beyond the mortal world, a nexus of the lands of life and death. The country is shrouded in perpetual twilight. The souls of the dead wash up on the land’s rocky shores as spirits made corporeal and trapped in lifeless bodies. Some float up the river, for the Sluggish River flows from the sea to the mountains, rather than the reverse. Some souls animate their fleshy prisons in the form of zombies, others escape as ghostly shadows and many are extracted and traded as commodities by the weird citizens of this terrible land. Zombies and shadows instinctively make their way inland, as baby sea turtles instinctively head toward the sea after hatching, for beyond the jagged Badlands is the Earthbound Paradise. Those souls that are captured or make their up the river without escaping their bodies are claimed by the Nine Petty Deaths, the self-proclaimed regents of this land.
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Post by venger on May 20, 2015 11:32:49 GMT -5
Here they meet Poro, a seemingly-friendly but inanimate soul, long-stranded on the dreary beaches of the Black Water who offers his limited knowledge in exchange for passage inland to the Earthbound Paradise.
As well as Gohl, a veritable mountain of deliquescent flesh slowly rotting on the shore, and his companion; a nameless carpenter given to wide exaggerations and long melancholies, who is fashioning a crude lifeboat from pale driftwood.
They offer to share their camp and talk of many strange strange things... of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--of cabbages--and kings--and why the sea is boiling hot--and whether pigs have wings.
In the distance a tall galley without sails, crewed by untiring zombies, cuts across the Black Water leaving not even a ripple in its wake.
The party is warned by their new-found allies that these "Beyonders" are very dangerous. But not nearly so much as the Nine Petty Deaths - as all of the lords and ladies of the land beyond the Black Water pay fealty to one petty death or another, with alliances shifting regularly.
The party is warned of additional local dangers including: the baleful bandersnatches, frightful jub-jub birds and the dread Jabberwocky, rarest of rare beasts what cannot be slain but with a weapon of exceeding sharpness.
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Post by Ginger on May 21, 2015 8:54:04 GMT -5
Does Poro have anything to say about his previous life? Where is he from?
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Post by venger on May 21, 2015 10:21:02 GMT -5
He was a trader in Ka-Rhati before he was killed by barbarians.
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Post by Ginger on May 21, 2015 10:37:29 GMT -5
Colby will ask about the bandersnatches, jub-jub birds, and the Jabberwocky. He is interested in hunting a mythical beast.
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Post by venger on May 21, 2015 10:55:08 GMT -5
Colby will ask about the bandersnatches, jub-jub birds, and the Jabberwocky. He is interested in hunting a mythical beast. A bandersnatch is a swift, savage long-necked predator with frumious jaws. Very cunning, hunt in packs. Jub-jub birds flock in narrow, dark depressing valleys. Their shrill, screaming cries foment terror in their prey. The carpenter says to "beware these desperate creatures that live their lives in perpetual passion!" No one has ever seen the Jabberwocky and lived. Though it is whispered that its hide is of "an unearthly steel which may be neither cleft nor molten, and there is nothing [of] the world that may avail to break it, nor even leave a scratch upon its surface." Gohl rumbles "Beware the Jabberwock, with eyes of flame! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!" |
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Post by Wolfgar on May 21, 2015 15:38:11 GMT -5
If we are in no rush then the clerics can finish healing everyone then get some rest and re-memorize spells. The magic users can do likewise.
Paavo will discretely ask HoL to use Know Alignment on these guys? He will do his own Detect Evil.
Just to make sure we are all on the same page, can they answer these questions:
-where are we likely to find Trommer?
-where is the Tower?
-how do we avoid the Petty Deaths?
-is there any reason to explore this land before trying to free Trommer?
-is Gohl small enough to be Shrunk by Colby?
-if not, how else can he be moved?
-other than the coolness factor, is there any reason killing the Jabberwock will help free Trommer?
-do the dead have the items they possessed when they died?
-would magic users have their spell books?
-what prevents a dead high level magic user/cleric from using a spell (e.g. teleport w/o error, plane shift, word of recall) to get home?
-can we use Death's Door on Poro to make him ambulatory?
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Post by venger on May 24, 2015 10:24:28 GMT -5
If we are in no rush then the clerics can finish healing everyone then get some rest and re-memorize spells. The magic users can do likewise. Prudent. Paavo will discretely ask HoL to use Know Alignment on these guys? He will do his own Detect Evil. Poro is Neutral. Gohl and the nameless carpenter are Chaotic Neutral. -where are we likely to find Trommer? When the party explains their situation, it becomes evident that Arawn's realm of Annwn is the Earthbound Paradise. Where the river ends. --how do we avoid the Petty Deaths? The deaths dwell in strongholds in the Badlands and gather at a grand tower with nine entrances to lay claim to the souls of the departed that have been captured in this land before they could travel to the Earthbound Paradise. Each petty death has his or her retinue, court functionaries and regalia and each death despises the others. They often capture souls claimed by their fellows to enable them to make cannier trades for more valuable souls. If one were especially powerful, or bold, one might seek alliance with one Petty Death or another.. (though probably not Heruldos who is "without a drop of mercy" or Wihiedro who "might be the most wicked of the deaths.") Poro thinks it possible one can obtain copper coins, called obolus, that provide safe passage for souls traveling up the river, but they must be purchased with secrets... dark and dangerous secrets. -is there any reason to explore this land before trying to free Trommer? Not really ... there are in fact fates worse than death. - -is Gohl small enough to be Shrunk by Colby? -if not, how else can he be moved? How much can Colby shrink something? Gohl wasn't intending on going anywhere. --other than the coolness factor, is there any reason killing the Jabberwock will help free Trommer? Probably not. --do the dead have the items they possessed when they died? No... "you can't take it with you" Though, strangely, all the souls who wash up on this bleak shore are appropriately garbed according to their rank/station/class in life. --would magic users have their spell books? Interestingly, all the party spellbooks seem to be in the quantum box. Is the party accessing the quantum box here, in this place? --what prevents a dead high level magic user/cleric from using a spell (e.g. teleport w/o error, plane shift, word of recall) to get home? They are not aware of any mortal magic that would allow one to escape the Realm of the Dead. Feel free to try... "Take us with you!" --can we use Death's Door on Poro to make him ambulatory? No. Animate Dead would be more likely. |
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Post by venger on May 24, 2015 10:30:17 GMT -5
Among them they will piece together a map of sorts for you.
(this will take a day or two for me to complete, just got back from out of town)
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Post by Wolfgar on May 26, 2015 18:04:45 GMT -5
Did we open the q-box in the Border Ethereal/Ethereal way back when?
Do we have the crystal ball? Can we scry Trommmer?
Dan is happy to spend the time to try to animate Poro. I assume it has different connotations here.
You can Shrink 10 cubic feet per level. At 12th level that is 120 cubic feet or roughly 5' x 5' x 5'. I guess that isn't very big. But since Gohl doesn't want to go anywhere, it doesn't really matter.
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Post by venger on May 27, 2015 10:54:30 GMT -5
Did we open the q-box in the Border Ethereal/Ethereal way back when? None of the NPCs present can tell you. It's been over a year (of game time) since the party has been in the Ethereal Plane. Do we have the crystal ball? Can we scry Trommmer? The party has the crystal ball. But Trommer is dead... who wants to try? Dan is happy to spend the time to try to animate Poro. I assume it has different connotations here. Be guided by the Player's Handbook: "The act of animating dead is not basically a good one, and it must be used with careful consideration and good reason by clerics of good alignment." You can Shrink 10 cubic feet per level. At 12th level that is 120 cubic feet or roughly 5' x 5' x 5'. I guess that isn't very big. But since Gohl doesn't want to go anywhere, it doesn't really matter. Probably not. |
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Post by Wolfgar on May 27, 2015 21:23:36 GMT -5
I guess the Astral Guide is with Finn. So it can't help with the q-box. Dan will check the augury sticks. I am guessing that recalling the secret chest may also be iffy. Dan is willing to use Commune if we have a list of yes/no questions.
Youssef will scry Trommer. I thought that Trommer was resurrected and then carried off by Arawn. So technically he should be alive.
Dan thinks that providing a soul the ability to reach its final resting place is a charitable act. So he will animate Poro. In theory he could also animate additional souls that are also stuck here. Can HoL point out 8 LG souls in need of animation?
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Post by Ginger on May 28, 2015 15:43:46 GMT -5
HoL will search for LG souls, but is unsure whether he'll be able to find 8 good men in this place.
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Post by venger on May 29, 2015 12:23:24 GMT -5
 I guess the Astral Guide is with Finn. So it can't help with the q-box. Dan will check the augury sticks. The augury sticks land in strange, morbid patterns... uninterpretable to the living. Youssef will scry Trommer. He sees darkness and chains. Dan thinks that providing a soul the ability to reach its final resting place is a charitable act. So he will animate Poro. Poro animates and is eternally grateful! He is last to act in the round and moves at 6". In theory he could also animate additional souls that are also stuck here. Can HoL point out 8 LG souls in need of animation? HoL will search for LG souls, but is unsure whether he'll be able to find 8 good men in this place. Men of conviction do not languish on these grey shores. |
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Post by Ginger on May 29, 2015 16:56:11 GMT -5
The augury sticks land in strange, morbid patterns... uninterpretable to the living. Haddiq will try to augur. Maybe he'll have better luck. |
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Post by venger on Jun 5, 2015 9:30:58 GMT -5
Haddiq will try to augur. Maybe he'll have better luck. Well, technically, Haddiq is dead and has no spells. And since he's dead, he can't rest to regain spells... so that's a problem. |
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Post by Wolfgar on Jun 5, 2015 11:16:50 GMT -5
Can Haddiq interpret the augury sticks?
Can he activate magic items?
Can he be the recipient of spells?
Does Dan think the zombie Haddiq could be raised? Or do we need the actual body since this body is just a manifestation of the soul?
Does the carpenter know anyone who we might consult regarding the finer points of being dead?
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Post by Ginger on Jun 5, 2015 13:13:10 GMT -5
Do the locals not know about other spell casters here? The dead must have some way of regaining spells in the land of the dead.
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Post by venger on Jun 5, 2015 14:15:33 GMT -5
Can Haddiq interpret the augury sticks? Only the caster of the Augury can interpret the pattern. Can he activate magic items? Some. Can he be the recipient of spells? Some. Does Dan think the zombie Haddiq could be raised? Uncertain, but doubtful. Or do we need the actual body since this body is just a manifestation of the soul? His physical body is burnt beyond recovery. Does the carpenter know anyone who we might consult regarding the finer points of being dead? Any of the Petty Deaths would be most knowledgeable. The Necrosages of Yazn are quite learned. The Beyonders who sail those Black Arks are said to hold the secrets of life & death, but wresting them away will be difficult Traveling from Yondo toward the grim stronghold of Heruldos, there is an Oracle at the edge of the White Woods There is an island, somewhere out in those turbid waters, said to possess a wondrous library containing the secret knowledge of the dead. Also there's a sea serpent maybe. |
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Post by venger on Jun 11, 2015 11:34:36 GMT -5
Do the locals not know about other spell casters here? The dead must have some way of regaining spells in the land of the dead. Dead men need no spells. Living men rest and regain them as normal. Undead.. do whatever undead do. |
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Post by venger on Jun 18, 2015 11:18:45 GMT -5
 The cabin is a shabby looking, run-down place made of petrified corpsewood and, under the gem of true-seeing, every square inch of the surface has minute, calligraphic writing on it. Nebulous evil permeates the area. Main Room The largest room in the cabin is full of furniture and other mundane items, most of which have sat here undisturbed for quite a long time. There are three chairs in this room, one in front of the desk and two in the northeast corner. Inside the rolling desk is a great book, bound in the flesh of virgin elves. It is easily as big as a dwarf’s chest... The fireplace on the west wall doesn’t so much as have any ashes in it Above the fireplace WAS a partially decayed, mounted deer head - now hacked to ruin on the floor. The mirror in the room was covered and removed from the house. Hanging on the wall is a strange clock set to midnight or noon. Kitchen and Pantry This room is mostly empty now, with empty cabinets, shelves and counters present along the west and south walls. The “window” between the main room and the kitchen is merely an open space in the wall, and does not have any glass in it. Opening the trapdoor will reveal a pit beneath. The pit has handholds (not a ladder!) in the side and is 90’ deep. Light sources at the top of the pit won’t illuminate the bottom, and climbing down requires both hands. Bedroom This room has a bed, a wardrobe, footlocker, and bedpan as furnishings. It is otherwise rather plain. Slippers are at the foot of the bed, several layers of leggings, a tunic, and a thick jacket are put up in the wardrobe. A large pack containing extra clothes, rope, a pick-axe, cooking pots, and other wilderness gear sits in the corner. (ransacked) Sitting Room In the southeast corner of the room is a harpsichord. It is not playing, and it can not be heard inside the room, but anyone standing outside the door (and not looking at it) can hear it playing. There is a bench near the instrument and a chair in the opposite corner. Handwritten sheet music was found inside the bench. There is a painting depicting the party, a one-eyed dwarf and a thin blue-skinned giant, with plum-colored eyes, a long pointed nose and unnaturally long arms & fingers all standing before an altar with a giant skeleton looming over it. There's an open door behind the altar with sinister eyes peering from it. Colby is sipping from a goblet as a light shines down on him from above like in some kind of cathedral. The painting is ancient, weighs about fifty pounds including the frame, and is six feet long and four feet high. Because of its age and its superior artistic depiction of the scene, if it can be kept in perfect condition, it can be sold for a substantial sum of gold. Bedroom This is another bedroom, containing a bed, a footlocker, and a nightstand next to the bed. There is a man inside who seems insistent the party leave him alone. If he pressed he says his name is Grover Cincinnati. But that seems like not the truth. |
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Post by Wolfgar on Jun 19, 2015 21:11:28 GMT -5
Can Finn read any of the minute writing that covers the walls?
Do we think Wizard Sight will work here? If Colby or Finn are willing that might useful. Youssef would do this if he were in a better mood. I would particularly like to look at the clock, mirror and book.
If we are taking a long break, Dan will memorize Remove Curse and try it on Youssef to see if that helps with his current state. They other option in exorcism but that can take a while. Any other suggestions? I guess before Dan tries Remove Curse, Paavo will try some Dispel Magics on the group of people effected.
Is the clock attached to the wall by any specific means? Finn could try using the silver tunic of duo-dimension to get between the clock and the wall. Maybe he will see a way to remove it.
Paavo will try using the two-handed axe on the walls of the building to see if they can be penetrated. Maybe we can hack through the wall around the clock. He will try it on the unattached front door first.
Anyone want to bother Grover? Maybe Haddiq, also being dead, would have some luck.
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Post by Ginger on Jun 21, 2015 20:28:37 GMT -5
I like all these plans, and my characters will do the requisite actions. Colby will also try his 35% Read Languages, and if he and Fin both fail, he will memorize and cast Comprehend Languages. The clock has a coocoo clock type opening at the top, correct? Colby will focus his investigations on trying to open it, first determining if it is trapped.
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Post by venger on Jun 23, 2015 12:13:48 GMT -5
The clock has a coocoo clock type opening at the top, correct? Colby will focus his investigations on trying to open it, first determining if it is trapped. More intense scrutiny of the clock reveals two things 1) the hour displayed is 11:59, AM/PM uncertain. 2) there is a tiny door directly above the 12 o'clock. Between Finnious and Colby it can be ascertained that, when the clock strikes the hour, the door should mechanically open. Not a trap. |
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Post by venger on Jun 23, 2015 12:13:50 GMT -5
Can Finn read any of the minute writing that covers the walls? The writing on the cabin holds no useful information, being rather a large collection of exaltations and proclamations such as, “All Hail the King of Death,” “To Rule Life and Death,” “Glory and Pain,” that sort of thing. Do we think Wizard Sight will work here? If Colby or Finn are willing that might useful. Youssef would do this if he were in a better mood. I would particularly like to look at the clock, mirror and book. The house appears to be a mix of conjuration/phantasmal magic. The clock is paradox/temporal magic like the party wizards have never seen before. The mirror is divination and the book does not seem to be magical. If we are taking a long break, Dan will memorize Remove Curse and try it on Youssef to see if that helps with his current state. They other option in exorcism but that can take a while. Any other suggestions? I guess before Dan tries Remove Curse, Paavo will try some Dispel Magics on the group of people effected. Neither Remove Curse nor Dispel Magic seem to have any effect on the melancholic henchmen/hirelings. Is the clock attached to the wall by any specific means? Finn could try using the silver tunic of duo-dimension to get between the clock and the wall. Maybe he will see a way to remove it. The clock is hung on a peg. But it is totally immovable. Strange. Paavo will try using the two-handed axe on the walls of the building to see if they can be penetrated. Maybe we can hack through the wall around the clock. He will try it on the unattached front door first. The cabin and the door are all petrified corpsewood - hacking through it takes considerable time and effort. Paavo will need to save vs. mind-affecting magic at the start of the session. |
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Fin
Junior Member
Posts: 81
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Post by Fin on Jun 23, 2015 18:58:45 GMT -5
While admittedly of little use now, Fin will make it known that as soon as possible, he intends to research a new spell: Finnious' Fierce Flatulence. The unlucky recipients will either be afflicted with horrible irruptions of decidedly strong effluence, or if they fail a saving throw, they swell as their nether orifice is blocked, causing a deadly explosion.
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Post by Ginger on Jun 24, 2015 9:09:14 GMT -5
Do the clock arms appear movable? Does it seem like Colby could nudge them to 12?
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Post by Wolfgar on Jun 24, 2015 10:04:47 GMT -5
I would rather you try nudging them away from 12.
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Post by Ginger on Jun 24, 2015 15:27:51 GMT -5
I would rather you try nudging them away from 12. Haha, yes. I would do that to test. I suspect nudging them to 12 is something to do in session. |
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Post by venger on Jun 25, 2015 9:11:26 GMT -5
Do the clock arms appear movable? Does it seem like Colby could nudge them to 12? They appear to be designed to move. Whether they move or not is unclear. Is Colby nudging them? |
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