Real World Info:
This session was played on April 5th, 2010.
Cast of Characters:
Marrieth with her retainers Apu and Kill-Hate
Gamgar Khazam with Pilpo Paggins, the son of a wealthy halfling industrialist, and his butler Jeeves
carter the thief
Dalamyr the Wise
William Parsnip
Summary:
The fourth floor of the Keep of Koralgesh is partially looted.
I. The Secret Passage
Back in the keep of Koralgesh, the adventuring party goes up the trap door on the extreme east of the keep. They discover several secret passageways into the royal bedchambers, and various studies, loungeds and dining areas. The north exit appears to be blocked by a cave-in.
II. A Bath in Disrepair
Almost immediately upon exiting the secret passage, the group finds a pool with two half-eaten sailors and a half-eaten half-orc. There is a trail of slime leading away. The party follows the slime trail to where it splits, leading downstairs, and into the dining hall.
III. Save the Lunch Break for Later
In the great dining hall, an apparition beckons William Parsnip into a side chamber where a skeleton in cleric robes is found to be pointing at a massive tome. Dalamyr inspects the book and as he touches it a disembodied voice reads the history of Koralgesh (magically compelling Dalamyr to turn the pages) and introduces Landau, a betraying wizard (this room was seen from the scrying pool on the first level).
In one of the royal guard rooms attached to the dining hall, the heroes find 3 guards that have obviously been magically petrified.
IV. A Fabulous French Meal
Following the slime trail leads to a second, inexplicably-deep bathing pool, where lurks the dreaded TYRANNABYSS! Luckily the tyrannabyss, some giant combination of a snail, an octopus, and a hagfish, is a lousy shot and in no time the barrage of sling stones and arrows takes it down. What's up with that?
William Parsnip demands the corpse of the tyrannabyss be hauled from the pool so he can taste its flesh. The heroes also see, at the bottom of the pool (which is about nine feet deep!), a small fortune in coins. Kill-Hate is given the unpleasant task of recovering them. From both pools.
V. We See Some Dead People
In a room off the southern hall, the brave adventurers find a desiccated corpse, still sitting upright in front of the fireplace. He wears a chain of office and a gold ring with a large dark gemstone. Twisting the gemstone reveals a secret compartment with a key.
In the adjoining room, Gamgar tries to hack the door in but suprisingly the door is opened by ghouls and the party is ambushed. Even though outnumbered the monsters rend Kill-Hate and Jeeves with paralyzing claws. Pilpo avenges his butler with furious blows from his mace.
VI. The Royal Bedchambers and Other Uneventful Rooms
Unsatisfied with looting the pewter dinnerware, the party ransacks the royal bedrooms, finding more gold and magical items.
In the princess' bedroom, what the PCs take to be a ghost has seemingly been interrupted in mid-painting of a bird. The brush is wet, but all the pigments are dry. There's an ornate ring in a small silver box in the vanity, that makes the wearer feel like perhaps they understand what it's like to have fur or feathers or scales.
In a closet is found 5 small kegs of high quality oil.
In the study, a concealed area of a bookshelf two scrolls are found.*
In the king's chamber, a magical ring, which makes the wearer seem less massive some how, is found in a golden ball that caps a bedpost, claimed by Marrieth. Also a magical dagger is found in the night stand. We'll call it King Ambril's Dagger. Claimed by Carter.
In the lounge, they find two golden candlesticks and a jade statue of Kor.
In the queen's chamber, Parsnip finds a silver embroidered belt of soft leather with a buckle of small pearls set in the shape of the sun.
In the weaving room, a spool of silver and a spool of gold thread are found.
VII. Return to camp.
After reading the passage in "The Prophecies of Nostradavid", Marrieth realizes that taking the silver chalice from the shrine of Kor is what has cursed her. Now what shall she do with it?
Gamgar dismisses Pilpo Paggins from his service without pay, citing a poor work ethic and unsatisfactory service.
Total Losses/Loot.
Kill-Hate and Pilpo's butler were mercilessly cut down by ghouls. Each surviving retainer gained 250xp, and each surviving player character gained 500xp and 446gp, 9sp, and 8cp.
The party obtained a great lot of loot:
Pewter plates worth 200gp; a golden ball worth 100gp; an ornate rug, sadly worthless; two golden candlesticks worth 50gp each; a jade statuette of Kor; a silver belt with pearl buckle worth 250gp; a silver mirror, comb, and brush set, worth 25gp; silver and gold thread worth 30gp; a silver box with three gold rings in it, worth 500gp; a chain of office worth 25gp; a large jeweled ring with a tiny key inside it, worth 55gp; a paintbrush and an unfinished painting of a bird; 470gp worth of coins recovered from the terrabyss' pool; 30gp worth of coins recovered from the dead sailors' pool; and five kegs of high-quality oil.
Plus:
Magical ring of King Ambril (claimed by Marrieth) (secret DM note - see p61)
Queenly magical ring of animal-feelingness (claimed by Dalamyr?)
Magical dagger of King Ambril
*and two scrolls, one of which is Protection from Lycanthropes. (Secret DM note: p60 for the other one)