The Demon & Dragon Slayers of the Drinking Crow Session #68- To Hunt A Shade

Following the second haul of dragon treasure the adventurers based out of the Drinking Crow pulled from the depths of 'The Complex', Armeen decided to put his/her hard earned coin towards bettering the Shrine of Danu. The cleric contracted the services of One-Arm to build a more permanent structure around the shrine in the Alley of the Gods. Key to Armeen's plans is an infirmary on the grounds where anyone seeking to offer their services as a healer my work. Wanting to not anger the sphinxes, Armeen spent addition gold on making sure there were improvements to where they live within the shrine.

When Armeen rejoined their fellow adventurers at the Burning Witch, they were all ready for adventure. Fr. Bert had spent the week providing food to the orphans of Orm. Bludoon was still processing the ancient ritual to even more ancient powers he partook in during the Solstice. All, though, were ready to turn towards a task that Copra Kaan's very being yearned to complete. When V'nais Two-Face designed him, his matrix included that part of hers that yearned to prove oneself in battle. This shadow monster that the party repelled in there second coin collection run was fueling that competitive part of Copra. The antaur needed to know if he could permanently best this entity or not. The rest of the group agreed to join in this task. The following party was seen headed to the Athenaeum of the Dying Sun:

• Armeen  of the Two Rivers (Level 5 Cleric of Danu)
• Jubal (Level 4 Beast Master)
• His mangy dog
• Bludoon (Level 4 Dwarf)
• Doogan (Level 3 Dwarf)
• Copra Kaan (Level 6 Vat Spawn Antaur)
• Fr. Bert (Level 5 Errant Friar of Arishem the Judge)
• Sunya Strong (Level 4 Fighter)

They were seen exiting the Athenaeum hours later. The party was battered and bleeding. The front and cuffs of the sleeves of Armeen's robe was wet. The party had no new treasure to divide before going their separate ways.

Jubal, Doogan, and Sunya Strong went off to celebrate another delve survived. And what an adventure it was. From the start of the dive, things were strange. On the regular descent into the Great Cavern form the Athenaeum, Copra Kaan swore that out of the corner of his eye that he saw a dark structure off in the distance. When he turned his gaze toward it, nothing was there. No of the party saw anything either.

The gorilla folk guards and the 5gp a head bribe the Slayers have been paying them to pass through their territory provided some normalcy. That was upended, though, by an encounter with an ogre collecting bugs from the crevasses in the stonework. The ogre proselytized to the party about the path of Law he and his brethren now walk. Armeen felt a pull towards visiting the altar they now attend to but was steered back towards the party's mission of tracking down this creature of shadow they have agree to fight. The shrine was filed away for a future visit.

Things continued to say on this side of pelicular as the party continued north. At the hexagon room where a quartet of gargoyles usually perch, they encountered a barricade. The obstruction was erected by a patrol of Lion-headed guards under the guidance of a white-robed researcher named Pharnos. The scholar was examining the inscriptions on the floor when the party approached. At first, he was guarded towards the adventurers but his demeanor softed as they told of their battles against the gargoyles and their antagonism with the self-styled Sorcerer-King Valtropis. Pharnos revealed that the inscription was a magical formula that bound the gargoyles to guard the intersection. He, along with this small contingent of the forces of the Imperial Mother, were tasked with investigating the situation and preventing the gargoyles from being re-instated.

Bludoon inquired as to the Imperial Mother's struggle with the Eye of Terror and if financial support in the matter would aid in the cause. Pharnos replied that money was not the problem. It was trained fighters and magical weaponry that the  Imperial Mother needed. Specifically, the end of magical arms and armor production with the abandonment of the Empire's dwarfin smiths of their forges below that hinders her efforts.

Throughout all of the parley with Pharnos, one of the Lion-headed guards named Lion-el keep looking Copra Kaan's way. Eventually, he interjected to ask Copra if he had any relatives that were not antaurs as the vat spawn adventure looked just like a wanted thief and pervert. This criminal, though, was not an antaur. Copra responded that in a wa y, he did have a relative once but not anymore. Lion-el offered his condolences but continued to eye Copra suspiciously.

The party expressed their interest to quest beyond the barrier on a hunt for a monster and Pharnos gave his approval. Upon their return, they were to mention Pharnos and they would be granted passage to the south. With this, they headed north then west to the deep stairs down to Level 5. Along the way to the stairs, no sign of the blue-skinned foot soldiers of Valtropis cold be seen.

As they moved down the slowly winding stairs, the carvings of the fantasies of a dreamer dancing in their torch light. Near the base of the stairs, Bludoon's carefully instructed them to step over the the trapped stair. Once everyone was on the other side, they began orienting themselves on the level. Halls of a light stone, rose-colored in the torch light, stretched in all directions.

The last time this group had visited Level 5, the massive shadow monster (at some point coined by Copra Kaan to be called "The Shade") was repelled down a southern 10"-wide corridor that terminated off of the 20"-wide main E-W hall. This is where they decided to behind their hunt. Moving south, they found a large room supported by pillars littered with bones The air was cool and damp. As the group rooted through the chaotic remains, they felt as if they were being watched. Copra Kaan especially was put on edge by this and began to scan the room. They decided to try to open a door in the southern wall by the vat spawn adventurer noticed a glow coming from behind one of the pillars. As the party discussed their plans to engage it, the glow revealed itself to being a form created out of light as it shot out of from the pillar and down an eastern exit.

The party followed east to discover a ransacked library filled with water damaged and moldy scrolls. Fr. Bert was able to lock down the writing as Old Imperialish but the text was too damaged to determine its context. Moving further east, they found themselves at a four-way intersection. The corridors were filled with the muffled sound of roaring water and the air was heavy with moisture. The party decided to move south. The hall terminated with a door to the east, south, and west. The smell of mildew and rot hung heavy in the air. They decided to open the southern door to discover what the source of the roaring water sound was.

On the other side, the party found a rocky beach along a waterfall. Going west along the beach, a set of doors was in the natural rock wall. A 25 ft. statue of an armor-clad woman stood along the water's north bank. The outline of another statue could be seen along the shadowy southern bank. Armeen approached the water to test it. She/he cupped their hands and took a sip. It was the typical mineral-heavy fresh water one would find in a cave. More curious, Armeen's hands brushed up against some stone work underneath the dark surface of the water. This mystery would have to wait for now as the party returned to their hunt of this mysterious moving light. They moved back through the door into the worked light stone halls to the north. They returned to the intersection and moved east again.

The party moved into some sort of shrine. The space was commanded by a statue of a drummer holding a book. The shadows created by their torch light seemed heavier in this room which put them on edge. This worry turned out to be well placed as creature reassembling Copra's 'The Shade' manifested at the room's only visible egress. This one seemed smaller than the last feeding a theory Copra and Armeen shared that each time it was defeated, it became lesser in its power.

The party met 'The Shade'e in combat. Tendrils gasped towards the party with most of them finding an adventurer to attack. No only did these tentacles smack and crush with the force of a material fist but they drew the very vitality out of the party members. Doogan's iron skillet proved useless as a weapon and Bludoon swung wildly with the Ender of Dreams. Fr. Bert began working the miracle of Holy Rest while Jubal found success with a swing of his Dancing Sword. It was Copra's Sword of Light that the cruel mass of darkness seemed "hurt" by the most. The shadows of the room danced as the glowing blade moved through the air. 'The Shade' seemed to to almost scream as tendrils wildly withered under the contact of Copra's blade. parts of it seemed to just evaporate into the shadows of the room.

Another strike of the tendrils of 'The Shade' struck out at the party again. Once again, all but one of the attacks landed. Most struck felt even weaker from the blows. As Fr. Bert continued to work his miracle, Bludoon attacked again but his axe once again went wide of the monster. Before another could act, the sword in Jubal's hand moved as if jumping forward. His blade once again cut into the darkness. The mass withered again as if in its throes before seeping into the southern wall.

Copra immediately began inspecting the southern wall in order to try to see what happened to 'The Shade'. Meanwhile, Bludoon and Armeen began inspecting the Drummer statue. Bludoon saw the seem in the arm of the statue where it could swing in order to release the book. On closer inspection, he could see a wire running up into the hollow of the arm. Meanwhile, Armeen knocked on the statue base discovering it was hollow.

Before any next steps could be taken, Copra Kaan pushed a loose stone revealing a hidden room. Most of the walls were covered in phantasmagoric frescoes with the southern one being a huge relief of a snoring dreamer. There was script carved above the sleeping form that Fr. Bert translated form Old Imperialish to read "While he slumbers, we move through his dream". As the Errant Friar spoke the words aloud, the agape mouth of the dreamer releasing its snore began to swirl with some sort of magical portal.

Exhausted, the party did not have it within themselves to see what was on the other side. Instead, they returned their attentions on the book. Bludoon instructed the party outside of the room into the corridor to the west. The dwarfin adventurer then tied a rope to the moving arm of the drumming statue. He then requested that Fr. Bert use the telekinetic power of the blade Dungeon Master to move the book to them as Bludoon pulled the arm open with the rope.

As Bludoon tugged the arm open, a large block fell from above he and Bert nearly crushing them. They both dodged out of the way but the stone now cut the group off from the room with the book. As Bludoon inspected the stone intending to determine its size, he could smell the faint scents of chamomile and mint. At 5ft. thick, the stone was too deep to remove with the party's current gear. 

Defeated for the moment, they decided to return to the surface. As they reached the stairs, the party saw a mass of shadow creeping towards them once again from the same 10' tunnel they started this day's exploration of Level 5 in. The party had to restrain Copra form attacking and convince him to retreat back to Orm.

After they used Pharnos' name to pass through the check point established by the Imperial Mother's forces on Level 3, they traveled south through the narrow tunnel connecting the north and south of this dungeon level. On the other side, they found a patrol of Lunar Elves waiting for them. The elves were relieved it was just their friends arriving into the old campsite. They asked the adventurers about the new dwarf among their ranks and as to when they would visit the elves again. It had been months their last meaningful visit. Armeen promised soon and quietly gave them a pair of the crystal fruits before the party returned to making their way back to the Athenaeum.

Experience Points

• Monstrous mass of shadow repelled back 1 x 650xp

Player Character Cut

• 162xp ea. (81xp ea. to Jubal, Doogan, and Sunya)

Write-ups, art, or maps submitted as play reports earn PC Level x 100xp. Let me know if anyone is taking on a downtime activity.