Sunday, January 26, 2025

Stormbringer Wolves Upon the Coast Session 9

Session 9 started with only two players present for the first part, Miklas Domonkos and Sigmar. A generic +20% for select skills and a +1d6 for damage was given out to represent the invisible party members. Heading west since the way north was blocked by the skeletons, they encounter room 14, with two watchers facing each other, a rusty hammer a bag and stone shelves. They rush the watchers, knocking them over and severing the heads. But setting them off.

Six Gelt-Promised shamble forth. The party notice one hand is cupped open and their rusty swords are held in their scabbards The party are sure they are infectious given how the remaining flesh bulges and rots around the gold rings. It is realised they want something, on the mention of money they first dammed traitor flashes a number with their free hand. As the hacksilver is poured in, it is absorbed, turning black and oxidized. After the first two topple over, the two realise they don’t have enough hacksilver to pay the rest and draw weapons. Fighting goes back and forth, as the dead can parry and were warriors in their own times. It takes a while, and the party are wary of the gold rings, I roll POW x 5% and it passes like a Call of Cthulhu Luck check. Hrafnkel puts the rings in his bag.

Passing into the larger room 13 with the cage of blades and the fire which banks itself as they approach. Seeing it’s built into a helmet and the cage is blades, they initially think about pulling it, since I elaborate on the fine workmanship of the blades before deciding to leave it to Althrow Tams, new Sorcerer of elemental fire. A good roll from the player even if elemental water or earth could have literally busted the dungeon wide open.

They continue the vague directions of Dainéal Ó Ceannaigh, turning north at the intersection. They see the room with a whirling ball of horse teeth. The walls were bitten and chewed, they were suspicious. Sigmar step forth and battled with it, the ball could not yet bite through her armour, but scattering the ball meant they saw it clump together again. I say they can pass a Doge roll to run through or two Parry rolls. They go through fine. The remaining players except for Hrafknel’s player turn up.

From the awful smell and images on the door into room 19, they choose not to go through. Heading into room 20, wary of the light. They are shocked to see a chimney with natural light. Theya re disturbed by the leeches which play inside the ribcages of Fionn Ó Ceannaigh’s Bonded Dead and on his own. Fionn is well preserved, very taunt despite retaining his hair and tattooed skin. He listened to the party’s woes, rubbishing Dainéal’s claims and offering his own interpretations, which always emphasis himself as the rightful king. He said there are darker things beneath the rock, and the Invaders (always vague) locked away someone druidic. He offers the party free passage and treasures of the floor if they return to kill Dainéal. He mentions how he can’t tattoo anyone anymore as he’s the only one with skin and indicates the fine set in the corner. He confirms the chimney goes up to the surface.

Yrestor asked if they could prove he was truly immortal, since he was questioning how one could claim to be a king when dead. Fionn said a king (semantically) remained a king even in death, and if he was to be struck by a blade, he would not die. Sigmar felt a crawly thing drop from the ceiling and told her to be quiet. Yrestor passed an ambush roll and cut him nearly down. Outraged, Fionn orders his dead forward and the rest of the players surge forth and finish hacking him down. The Bonded Dead are possibly confused, their oaths no longer apply (there’s no description of what happens if they are still present, though they remain and the curse of undeath is tied to the three lords).
The party waste no time in hoisting away the body, taking the tattoo set and stripping it outside, cutting off the head to present to Dainéal.

The crawly thing reveals itself to be a Demon of Law, Slivec. A Centipede with mantis-like forelegs and head. It has been hot on the trail of Scarsabad, who slipped ahead. It was willing to offer whatever was available to sway to the party to the side of Law. Sigmar is offered the power of a Champion of Law, but not the virtues as Slivec cannot just summon friends. It is questioned why the restriction of agents of Law and Chaos working together is being ignored and Slivec says because they need to bring the plane into alignment so it can be fought over, after is different. Silvec also turns its body into a coiled amulet for Sigmar, the concave shape filling with the blood-red potion. Healign Sigmar’s major wound, but the healing and rushed investment costs her 1 CON and 1 POW. It marks the most direct route to the horrors below. As a boon for Yrestor, a noble of a deeply Lawful place, Silvec invests itself/imparts (not certain), a Virtue of Knowledge. Which does not raise Yerstor’s intelligence to 4, leaving it at 3.

The party set off, avoiding damage from the horse teeth. They run into two Vinegar-Drinkers as the reach the intersection. Seeing them swagger and stink, they use offer some of their wine, the dead let the pass. Reaching the room with the blades and fire and Althrow Tams pulls out the blade, subdues the salamander within and wears the helmet. They take the blades after I emphasis how nice they are. They take a detour to room 11, and Sigmar uses her pike (somehow carried through as they forgot they left the crew outside). To open the coffin and avoid the weeping tar, avoiding the pike igniting from the boiling tar with a POW x 5% roll. King Ceannaigh burbles his speech, the party understand the sons are both self-serving and agree to the demands, though they continue to question what kingdom, Ceannaigh cannot remember but says the mainland. They lay Fionn’s head and decide to kill Dainéal on the way out.

Passing to Room 15, Yerstor trips down the stairs not being explicitly careful. Gets banged up. The darkness and slime are unnerving, the water constant. Six Sea-Things are in the large antechamber with the ornate door that requires two descriptions before they remember it. But a positive reaction is rolled and they merely rattle their horrible spines and the party warily advance weapons drawn but not engaging. Yerstor has been relying on the Virtue of Knowledge, the player enjoying the 80% wrong information and acting on it anyway. But when grasping the freezing door, it passes and Yerstor does not tear his hand away despite the cold. Althrow Tams uses the fire elemental to warm the handle so Yerstor can remove his hand and the door can be opened. Seeing the Legionaries and the remnants of the battle in front of them, they argue about the contents of the room until a roll suggests the medallions and they wear them to pass. Passing into room 5, Yerstor takes the fresh bread as good rations.

In room 10 they see the platform and trap, but it never counted on the Winged Folk of Myyrrhn. Sigmar retrieves about 1000 hacksilver worth of treasure, with some on the platform tipping down before they realise they have filled a pack and that’s enough for now.

In room 14 the Praetorian Legionaries move to kill but the Lictor stops them, she’s bored and wants conversation. She discusses that the prison is an arc-druid they couldn’t kill and that she binds the seal. The party have stolen the rations of the dead and only her ommand keeps them from attacking. When asking about the empire, the party explain it’s gone and with a smirk she dies and crumbles to dust. With that the party realise that the monks thought they were keeping the seal, but really were the outer seal, the primary seal has just been broken. The Praetorian surge forth to kill the ration-thieves.

Miklas Domonkos’s player says they might drop out due to scheduling and disengagement.

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