Mother of Flies - Session 40: Walcourt Raid, Part III

Dramatis Personae

Alfaren “Alfred” Eredel – Elf transmuter

Alizander Carmelizzia - Human (Varisian) sorcerer

Boecca – Half-orc inquisitor of Erastil

Carlos Santiago - Half-orc (Alkenstarian) evoker

Slavé/Jancen – Tiefling (in guise as a human) rogue/assassin

Tavo Dechirent - Human cleric of Pharasma

Starday, 30 Pharast, 4709 A.R.

Alizander, Carlos, Boecca, and Tavo are ambushed while investigating the body of Vassindio Drovenge from the floor above. An invisible spellcaster unleashes a fireball in the room, engulfing the group in flame. The Returners respond with spells of their own – glitterdust to reveal the spellcaster followed by black tentacles to halt his escape. The attacker is shrouded in a veil of gold dust, but manages to evade the grasping tentacles and glides out of sight.

Alfred hears the battle from the secret passageway within the outer wall and finds a secret door leading to the Walcourt grounds. He exits the secret passage, flies over Walcourt and dispels his slowly creeping cloudkill spell, then joins the rest of the group.

Slavé continues to explore the rooms in the lower east wing of Walcourt. He finds a secret door leading to a long-disused section of the building consisting of dusty storerooms and closets. In one of these storerooms Slavé comes across the desiccated skeleton of an old resident of the complex. Always wary, Slavé uses his bag of many tricks to conjure a sodden dog and sends it into the room first. The skeleton springs to life as the dog enters the room; a long, thick, disgusting tongue appendage shoots out of the skeleton’s mouth, biting the dog and sending into paralytic spasms. The skeleton lurches out of its chair with alarming speed, searching for the invisible Slavé. Slavé leads the undead creature on a wild chase through the dusty hallways, managing to get in several devastating attacks on the thing with his crossbow, even pinning the skeleton’s distended fanged tongue to the back of its skull with one well-placed bolt. The creature attempts to escape, but ends up running directly into the path of the other Returners, who waste little time destroying the murderous undead.

Meanwhile, the party is set upon once again by the invisible spellcaster, this time from the Walcourt grounds just outside of the room containing the remains of the Drovenge patriarch. The spells fly between the attacker and Carlos and Alfred. The attacking wizard is once again revealed by a glitterdust spell, and Alizander makes a daring decision to charge. He slams into the attacker and succeeds in pinning him to the ground. After several more hits from the Returners, the attacker finally submits and reveals himself – a handsome wizard with dark hair and beard, wielding a staff carved in the likeness of a coiled blue dragon. Through interrogation, the Returners learn that the wizards name is Sandor, sometimes called the Strange by the other Council members. He has been working as a guild wizard for the Council for some time, first under Vassindio and then under Ecarrdian and Chammady following the coup. He professes to being an opportunist, only working for the Council to fund his interest in astronomy and astrology. The party is almost ready to believe him, especially after he reveals that the dungeons below Walcourt hold the Returners’ likely target – the Lord of Shadows, a powerful vampire that controls the shadows and night terrors of Westcrown. Something about him unsettles Alizander and Boecca, however, and the half-orc inquisitor uses his arts to wrest the truth out of Sandor – that he is secretly a member of an organization called the Night Heralds who has quietly been keeping a watch on the stars for his true masters to return from beyond the Dark Tapestry. Sandor’s speech becomes increasingly mad as he spouts prophecy of the Dark Tapestry and the far realm, until he is finally silenced by Boecca.

Treasure

· From the Dark creeper footpads

o Masterwork daggers (5) (worth 750 gp total)

o Black smear poison (5) (worth 900 gp total)

· From C10. Dining Room

o Note/Invitation

· From C21. Forgotten Storage

o Assassin’s dagger (worth 5302 gp)

o Potions of invisibility (3) (worth 450 gp total)

o 12 citrines (worth 2400 gp total)

· From Manus Undiomede (mohrg)

o Gold eyepatch (worth 150 gp)

· From Sandor the Strange

o Scroll of shadow walk (worth 825 gp)

o Bracers of armour +4 (worth 8000 gp)

o Headband of vast intelligence +2 (Use Magic Device) (worth 2000 gp)

o Key

Experience

· Council thieves (6, from session 39) – 4800 xp

· Shadow rat swarm (from session 39) – 1200 xp

· Dark creeper footpads (5) – 6000 xp

· Dark stalker guildsman – 4800 xp

· Guillotine trap – 6400 xp

· Manus Undiomede (mohrg) – 4800 xp

· Sandor the Strange (diviner) – 12,800 xp

· Total – 40,800 xp

· Per PC (6) – 6800 xp

Current XP Total per PC

· Carlos, Slavé – 108,702 xp

· Alfred – 106,147 xp

· Boecca – 106,127 xp

· Tavo – 102,057 xp

· Alizander – 100,717 xp

· Fame Points - 21