Session 13: March 12, 2024 (34th Day of Springrise, 1165 AS) The Party Would Never Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth

Session 12: March 12, 2024 (34th Day of Springrise, 1165 AS) 

Dramatis Personae:

• Echo, Wolfkin Hunter, played by Mike "The dwarf breathes so loud I could have shot him in the dark" P.
• Kelter Tealeaf, Halfling Rogue, played by Mike "The Nano Cuisinart" Y.
• Vinny Boombatz, Dwarven Fighter, played by Eric "I crush your head" M.

Quod Occurrit:

Since a well-rested party is an effective one, the group camps for the night. In the morning (the 35th), they party decide that returning the horse to its home is the right thing to do, and with Nirvea's help and Echo's pathfinding ability, they start on their way. While working towards. where they suppose the keep must lie, they pass by an abandoned mine that nearly tempted them to investigate first. However, the mines are no place for a pony (or a warhorse), even one so brave as Bill, so they made note of its location, determined to come back and check it out. 

Camping that night was rough. Echo couldn't find a suitable place, so they suffered through the evening as best they could. Fortunately nothing disturbed their meagre rest, though perhaps some excitement would have been preferable to a night of sleeplessness.

The next day, they eventually espy a keep with a small surrounding village and approach. They are met by a contingent of guards that don't look particularly wealthy, but their gear is serviceable and well-maintained. 

A guard takes them to the Lady of the manor, and they tell her the story of how they found the horse. 

While obviously saddened at her husband's unknown fate, Lady Melinda presents them with a small gold statuette of a warhorse as thanks them bringing the news (and horse) to her. She even gives her husband's horse to the party, and declares that they will always have a safe haven at Castle LaVide.

The party spends their time at the castle doing some training. Kelter gets help from the guards on his fighting skills. He is now able to attack with two daggers in a flurry of attacks. If you have to fight Kelter, make sure you're armoured or he'll make mincemeat out of you.

In the morning of the 37th they head towards the mine (leaving their new horse at the castle), but the camping is (again!) grossly uncomfortable, and they don't get much rest, probably sue to the torrential rain. It's amazing how tree roots can find just the right spot in your shoulder blade to keep you up all night no matter how you set up your bedroll. Life as an adventurer is hard!

The next day, the party draws near to the mine, and as they do so they see a campsite. As far as they can remember, it wasn't there when they passed by previously. As this is the Forbidden Lands and not the Welcoming Lands, Kelter does a recce to see who's who in the zoo. The only person he can see is a lone dwarf tending a campfire. He returns to the group and gives report, and it is decided that Vinny (the local dwarf expert, being something of a dwarf himself), should go make the stranger's acquaintance.  

Vinny does so, and the rather surprised dwarf introduces himself as Ulm, a Meromannian dwarf. He relates that his friend Milva came to the mine with her retinue and he hasn't heard from her since. Being the sort of people that like to investigate obviously dangerous locales without any promise of remuneration, the group agrees to accompany Ulm into the mine and investigate. 

They work their way down a spiral staircase into the mine. At first it seems deserted, with nothing of note except the cleverly carved light shafts that keep this part of the mine from being in impenetrable darkness. Soon after, they enter a fairly large room, and notice tracks in the dirt that are most certainly not human. But none of the party are human either, so whatevs. 

They notice a doorway where the tracks get thicker and Kelter moves to investigate. He is incredibly stealthy, and works his way down a short corridor. He can see in the dim light that the place is crawling with Saurians who have yet to notice the halfling in on their doorstep. Rather than make introductions, Kelter did tread Cobb's Traverse and return to the group. While he was telling his friends about the Saurians, a tentacle comes down from the ceiling and starts fumbling about, apparently looking for something. They fire a couple of arrows at it but miss, and the tentacle doesn't seem to notice, so the party continues past, (rightly) assuming they've dodged a bullet.

Taking a left, they proceed down a very straight and very long square tunnel, and notice a blue glow coming from a side passage. Stepping inside, they realize they've wandered into a crypt, and it is occupied by more than the dead. Three figures in old dwarven armour turn to face the heroes. Their faces are old and rotten, and their eyes hollow sockets devoid of anything but hatred towards the living. They move towards the party with blades drawn, eager to feast on the flesh of heroes.

At that point, I end the session. Finally, a cliffhanger!