Three Faces of Evil, part I

Players/Characters:

• Holly D'Vine (Bradford), LG female aasimar fighter 2
• Alden (Martin), CN male human barbarian 3
• Grey 'the Handsome' (Tom), CG male elf rogue 3
• Oloret Stoor (Sean), LG male human cleric of Pelor 3
• Raavi Gill (Peggy), CG female half-elf sorcerer 3
• Tuor (Craig), NG male half-elf druid 3, with Bingy, wolf companion.

Game Events:
With their new-found treasure, the group began to prepare for further adventures; particularly by buying a wand of cure light wounds from the high priest of Heironeous serving the garrison, Valkus Dun. He greeted them kindly and aided them.

Allustan was presented with the green worm that the group had found amongst Filge's possessions. He was visibly worried, and counselled them that an ancient temple below the town might well be the source of the worms. The temple was below a mine owned by the repulsive dwarf, Ragnolin Dourstone. The dwarf mine-owner wouldn't allow anyone in, but it could be that Balabar Smenk, a known rival of Dourstone, would be able to help the group.

So it proved. After visiting him at his home - with Alden's reputation as a bouncer at the Feral Dog helping the group get past Smenk's guards - Balabar provided funds to bribe the miners and contacts to get past the guards. Into the mine they went!

Gar, the miner bribed by Smenk, showed them the elevator into the lower depths, which had only recently been installed. The miners had been warned off approaching it! Alden, Holly and Oleret were the first to descend. They found themselves in a large open space with a large black pool, and two tiefling guards. The battle was hard-fought, but they were eventually victorious.

Three doors led from the hall: one marked by the symbol of Hextor, one by the symbol of Vecna, and the third unmarked. The guards had alerted those beyond the Hextorian door, and the sound of bells could be heard from behind it. Quickly, the group moved to the unmarked door and moved beyond.

A cave system proved to be beyond the door. As they progressed deeper into the fissures, Grimlocks and Krenshar attacked them and were fought off. However, in a large room with a cliff falling off to a floor 45' below, Alden was scared by the krenshar and used his ring of feather falling to escape over the cliff. Unfortunately for him, two Grimlock archers took note of this and began to use him as target practice.

Alden escaped into a small tunnel below, but was ambushed by two chokers! Retreating into the arrow storm, he found a new place to shelter while the rest of the party expended the bulk of their arrows trying to defeat the grimlocks. Eventually they were successful and the group reunited.

Feeling low on resources, the group rested just within the entranceway to the grimlock tunnels. A pair of grimlocks came to ambush them, but Holly and Grey detected them and slew them, allowing Oleret and Raavi to recover their depleted spells.

Pressing ever onwards, the heroes defeated the chokers (though they almost lost the fight!), then climbed up to another tunnel and found a way leading upwards at an angle. Alden slew a female grimlock barbarian with the aid of Raavi's enlarge person spell, and the group made their way up the passageway...

NPC Developments:

• Allustan revealed the existence of the ancient temple, and is worried about the threat the undead worms could pose for Diamond Lake.
• Balabar Smenk met the group, and was quite taken by Raavi (in a disgusting sort of way; the feelings were not mutial). He agreed to help the party find proof against Dourstone.
• Valkus Dun sold the party a wand of cure light wounds and promised to make more; he is friendly and a mentor to both Holly and Oleret; he is less taken by the chaotic tendencies of Grey and Raavi, but will help them if they keep to the part of Weal (good).
• Velias Childramun reminded Holly and Oleret that if they're ever wounded, he will help them.
• Gar is a miner bribed by Smenk; he aided the group's entry to the mine and set up a safe place for them to rest if necessary.

Memorable Quotes:

• "So, you're saying there's an evil cult in Diamond Lake. Do you have any proof of this outrageous suggestion?" "We've got a worm!" - Smenk and Alden.
• "Your PC's names?" "Grey, 'the Handsome'" "Your charisma score?" "8" - Merric and Tom.

The Whispering Cairn, part III

Players/Characters:

• Holly D'Vine (Bradford), LG female aasimar fighter 1
• Olden (Martin), CN male human barbarian 2
• Grey 'the Handsome' (Tom), CG male elf rogue 2
• Oloret Stoor (Sean), LG male human cleric of Pelor 2
• Raavi Gill (Peggy), CG female half-elf sorcerer 2
• Tuor (Craig), NG male half-elf druid 2, with Bingy, wolf companion.

Game Events:
The group recovered Alistor's bones, and split up: some doing some shopping (and some drinking), and the others returning the bones to his family's farm.

The drinkers made their way to the Emporium and its beer garden. There they met Auric, a gladiator from the Free City of Greyhawk and one of the adventurers exploring another cairn. Revelry followed.

The bone-bearers had worse luck: the farm was there, but grave robbers had recently taken the remains of Alistor's family! They hadn't all escaped alive, though, as an owlbear had taken possession of the house. As the enraged beast attacked the heroes, they slew it, only then to find its child. Being truly mercenary (or soft-hearted), they sold it to Allustan.

Investigating the trail of the grave-robbers brought them to find Kullen's gang, a group of ne'er-do-wells who once worked for a mine that had been bought out by Balabar Smenk. They were now working for a necromancer, Filge, who had recently moved into the nearby observatory. Alden put his drinking skills to good use in recovering this information. Possibly.

Filge proved a merry chap, with many undead servants. He attacked the party, but didn't get a chance to regret it, as he was slain shortly thereafter.

Searching his hideout, the party recovered the bones of Alistor's family (they had been animated as skeletons), as well as this letter:

Filge,
I need you in Diamond Lake, my boy.

The cult situation has grown worse. Deep within Dourstone Mine they're studying things brought in from the southern hills. Green worms and unkillable zombies. I nicked one of the worms for you to study.

I'll put you up at the old observatory. Show this letter to the big white half-orc at the Feral Dog. He'll help you get settled. I trust you'll find these coins sufficient to cover your travel from the Free City.

S.

A bottle with a strange green worm preserved in it was also recovered.

With Alistor's bones reunited with his family's, the ghostly boy fulfilled his promise and opened the way to the final chambers of the Whispering Cairn before passing on to heaven.

The final chambers proved to be the tomb and monument to Zosiel, a minor Wind Duke killed at the Battle of Pesh. Animated scenes about the tomb showed the progress of the battle between Aaqa and Chaos that shattered the realm of the Wind Dukes, along with scenes of a sphere of annihilation, the legendary staff of law (which was shattered into the Rod of Seven Parts). Within the tomb was also a longsword and something that appeared to be part of a talisman of the sphere.

More treasure was found, and the group returned to Allustan to discuss their findings. Allustan, meanwhile, had located a book with information about the Wind Dukes of Aaqa, and much ancient history was revealed.

The Whispering Cairn, part II

Players/Characters:

• Holly D'Vine (Bradford), LG female aasimar fighter 1
• Olden (Martin), CN male human barbarian 1
• Grey 'the Handsome' (Tom), CG male elf rogue 1
• Oloret Stoor (Sean), LG male human cleric of Pelor 1
• Raavi Gill (Peggy), CG female half-elf sorcerer 1
• Tuor (Craig), NG male half-elf druid 1, with Bingy, wolf companion.

Game Events:
More investigation of the room with seven lanterns (now all replaced) allowed you access to a second hidden chamber via an elevator. The main challenges here were a small earth elemental and some brown mold that sucked the heat out of nearby creatures. This area proved to be a workshop area, with many small things pointing to its original inhabitant being an architect.

A suit of magical chainmail and some magic wands were the main things found in this area.

The final secret elevator was a trap, and one easily avoided - you were not crushed as the last poor fellow to step into it was.

However, there was a hidden passage, some thirty feet above the ground that led to a strange screaming face. As Grey approached it, a hypnotic pattern of multicoloured lights appeared, and then a great wind blew those in the passage back out to fall to their deaths! Luckily, Grey could hang onto the chain, and Alden had found a ring of feather falling!

More climbing gear was needed, and so everyone returned to town. Raavi and Holly went to the wizard Allustan for help with the strange runes they had found; he identified them as relating to the elemental plane of air, and the legendary Wind Dukes of Aqua, but further research would take time.

The riddle of the face was solved - you had to light all the lanterns in the chamber of corridors! With that done, the face disappeared and a corridor beyond was revealed. There you were attacked by an ancient trap, a loathsome grick, and finally encountered the ghost of a young boy: Alistor Land. He offered to open the next door if you would bury his bones with those of his family...

The Whispering Cairn, part I

Players/Characters:

• Holly D'Vine (Bradford), LG female aasimar fighter 1
• Alden (Martin), CN male human barbarian 1
• Grey 'the Handsome' (Tom), CG male elf rogue 1
• Oloret Stoor (Sean), LG male human cleric of Pelor 1
• Raavi Gill (Peggy), CG female half-elf sorcerer 1
• Tuor (Craig), NG male half-elf druid 1, with Bingy, wolf companion.

Game Events:
An abandoned manor only minutes from the cairn was your base. From there, you set out on your first adventure. The tunnel was old but in fairly good repair, although there was some sign of rockfalls.

The first item of interest you found were the fragments of a free standing portal, with an unusual glyph on the bottom. Only the base and one side remained, but it seemed clear that it would form an oval when complete, big enough for someone to step through. Alas, it was beyond repair.

A den of wolves proved the next challenge, one swiftly overcome. Investigating the wolf den found an indigo lantern, along with some other treasure.

Going further into the cairn, you discovered a large chamber with seven corridors leading from it, and a sarcophagus in the middle. Five of the seven corridors had lanterns in them; it took little thought to realise that they each corresponded to one colour of the rainbow. One was already burning as an everburning torch had been left in it; the others were long burnt out.

It was discovered that the (empty) sarcophagus could be rotated to point at the corridors. When it pointed at the fourth corridor - the one with the green, burning lantern - a grinding noise could be heard and eventually the floor collapsed and a swarm of acid beetles and a mad slasher (a spider-like creature) poured out of the gap below.

Fire proved the way to destroy the insects.

Investigating the collapsed tiles led to the discovery of a shaft leading down. Rope and climbing skill allowed you all to convey yourselves to the first secret part of the ruins.

There you discovered more bugs (ugh!), a sleeping chamber where air currents floated you above the stone beds, and a section of the ruins submerged in water.

There, great bravery (and a rope) allowed you to fight off a ghoul, a water elemental, and the missing Red Lantern from above!

Happy with your adventure, you returned to your "mansion" above.

PC Backgrounds

Sean's background:
You were born in the Free City of Greyhawk. While living there, you embraced the faith of Pelor, God of the Sun. As an acolyte of the church, it was suggested to you that the small mining town of Diamond Lake might need your help. Nothing could be more true!

Diamond Lake is a hellhole of a place: full of people of broken dreams and the corrupt managers that run it. You have found a sanctuary of sorts with the folk of the local garrison of the City Watch. Although they mostly worship Heironeous, God of Chivalry and Honour, they have treated you well.

While there, you met Bradford's character, a young woman from Diamond Lake training to be a soldier. Near penniless and with poor prospects, she hatched a plan to get out of Diamond Lake: to search for secret tunnels in a nearby cairn that might contain treasure! (This happened to also be a plan hatched by a trio of adventurers from the Free City of Greyhawk, but they were going to a different cairn).

Being sure that the glory of exploring the cairn would enhance your own prospects, you agreed to help the young woman on your quest. So, a few days later, you found yourself amongst a motly crew of adventures - none more motly than Martin's Barbarian!

Holly d'Vine's (Bradford) Background:
Holly comes from a line of noble knights in the service of Heironeous. It can be said that they have been specially blessed by Heironeous, and that for many years the family lived in the Shield Lands, the home of the Knights of the Holy Shielding, and there opposed the work of Iuz the Evil, that evil demigod who, if left unchecked, would cause destruction and chaos across the Flanaess.

When Iuz vanished some centuries ago, it was thought that the Knights would have completed their task and scourged the evil orcs from the Oerth. It was not to be. A new group arose, the Heirophants of the Horned Society, and they schemed and plotted and caused more hardships for the knights.

It was one of those schemes that brought the d'Vine family low. What occurred is not fully known - Holly's father and grandfather perished getting Holly's mother to the relative safety of Diamond Lake - but, at the end of it, Holly, her brother and her mother were paupers living in the foul mining town where our adventures have begun.

Holly remembers the sword of her grandfather, a blessed weapon sacred to Heironeous, which is now lost in her family's ruin. Although her brother has abandoned the path of the knights, Holly has sworn to hold true.