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[5
Calistril 4708 continued]
In the cave that has served as their hidden base for attacks on Jorgenfist, the defenders of Sandpoint discuss what to do about the lamias that have defeated them handily in two consecutive battles. A suggestion is made to simply bypass the lamias, but Salma worries that would lead to the party being attacked from behind while engaged with other foes. The discussion of strategy continues until, with a loud “popping” sound, a pair of figures suddenly manifest in the cave! One is a robed figure, while the other is a heavily armed dwarf holding a waraxe! The robed figure nods to the dwarf and then teleports away, leaving the dwarf in a standoff with the adventurers. Jinkatsyu breaks the ice by asking the dwarf what he thinks of giants. “Kill them all!” shouts the dwarf. The others relax, and allow the dwarf, Jemar Crowell, to explain he was teleported to Jorgenfist in search of a fellow group of dwarves from Janderhoff who went missing while prospecting on the Storval Plateau. The adventurers decide not to look a gift horse in the mouth, and an alliance is quickly struck. The rest of the day is spent in heated debate about what to do next. Eventually, a consensus is reached to try to sneak past the lamias but to be prepared to fight if necessary.
[6
Calistril 4708]
The
adventurers, with their new dwarf ally, try to move stealthily into
Jorgenfist’s subterranean level. But
Jemar’s armor clinks with every step, and Jinkatsyu’s scabbard constantly
scrapes along the wall. The group
doesn’t get far before they hear cackling laughter in the distance. Deciding to quickly search some of the
unexplored side chambers, the adventurers discovery a reeking (but unoccupied)
tannery and a forge designed to allow prisoners in iron cages to work the
bellows—and the cages are still occupied!
The five dwarves that Jemar came in search of are set free and given
directions to the adventurers’ hideout to wait in until the threat of the
lamias can be dealt with.
The
adventurers decide to backtrack to make sure they’re not being followed. They see a massive dining hall that contains
a large throne, and hear banging sounds coming from what must be a kitchen—but
they decide to leave it alone for now.
Conna, the stone giant elder who earlier gave them advice, whispers to
the group from around a corner that Mokmurian is still alive and that the
tribes above continue their preparations for war. Jemar erupts with fury when he realizes that
the adventurers have befriended a giant, but although he scares Conna away, he
doesn’t give chase.
After
several more minutes of cautious exploration and backtracking to ensure they’re
not walking into another ambush, the adventurers finally approach the unholy
shrine to Lamashtu from the north. The
cloaked figure is still on the altar, but Jinkatsyu discerns it’s larger than
last time—and he’s ready when the figure throws off its shroud to reveal one of
the lamias! Inexplicably without its
magical duplicates, the lamia is stabbed multiple times in quick succession by
the swashbuckling kitsune, and he resists the priestess’ attempt to paralyze
him, thanks to Ava’s magical preparations.
In seconds, one of the lamia sisters that had caused the group so much
heartache lays dead at their feet!
A
column of flame announces the arrival of the second lamia, laughing with joy
when she sees the fate of her kin. Salma
resists the lamia’s next wave of magic, and before it can try again, Jinkatsyu
and Jemar have dispatched it. The stunningly
easy victory is tainted only by the realization that another figure stands
further in the shadowy caverns. The
hooded figure is missing its fingers, and the adventurers are prepared for what
they see when they remove the hood: Wystan has been turned into a cruel mockery
of life—a zombie! Although destroyed
quickly, the lamias would no doubt believe they had the last laugh. In what may be a sign of the greed that has
infected them, the adventurers quickly and unceremoniously strip the paladin’s
corpse of anything valuable.
---------------------------------------------Director's Commentary (October 14, 2019)
Jemar was a temporary "loaner PC" from the NPC Codex for the player who had been running Wystan. I didn't want the player to know beforehand whether Wystan was alive or dead.
The final engagement against the lamias was something of an anti-climax.
There's irony in the PCs cold-heartedly looting their fallen given that a major theme of the entire campaign is greed.
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