Thotham's Journal #13

We discovered a strange tablet that acts as a kind of compass, Yuna attuned to the item and while the rest of us could only see strange eldritch markings on it, she could discern the location of some cultists that worship a strange God. This device when used made a large gong sound and lit a blue lighted path leading us further into the mists.  

I stayed slightly behind the group at this point, lurking from the shadows, but still close enough I could witness them receiving a quest from a knight in black armor with spikes protruding from it. He directed my companions to find three birds and directed them to the nearby town for help with this quest.

In town, I rejoined the group as we entered a merchant shop that carried more magic items than we could have dreamed of and at what seemed reasonable prices. Zax purchased a new defensive shield and sword. Inrah purchased some eyes of the eagles to help with her scouting. Shadow, our intimidating warforged Shadow Monk, actually paid to replace his arms with ones that can protrude with combat blades! Lefty purchased a horrifying scimitar whose magic seems to seek blood in exchange for healing the holder (to be honest, this blade seems a bit cursed, watch your back). Yuna acquired a bag of holding. As for me, I spent my last coin on a rare ring of protection, who knows what horrors await us with Yuna's compass?

After stocking up, we journeyed further while Luna led us through the mouth of a winding cave where the waters had receded. Following our compass, we eventually came to a great body of water we would need to somehow cross. Inrah's cloak of useful items was invaluable once again as she had two patches with two rowboats, just enough for our party to use. None of us are particularly skilled at sailing vessels like these, but with Zax and Yuna's combined strength they were able to get us over the surf and onward, our path lit by the compass.

Eventually we saw a small island in the distance and our compass led us towards the mouth of a cave inside the island. Thankfully no battles had to be fought on the water, in fact, Yuna's compass seemed to still the waters when used.

Once arriving at the cave entrance, we pushed deeper into the dark. There was bioluminescent moss that when brushed would leave a slight glow, so I used my telekinetic hand to stroke the side of the cave to help me with light. Unlike me, many of the party have excellent dark vision to help lead the way.

Eventually we came to a landing where I placed my pet frog, Chemotoad, on some moss and told him to stay. He glowed quite happily while gobbling up the bioluminescent moss!  I'll be back for my friend, no need to risk my lucky toad pet during the battle to come.

We prepared for battle and Shadow and Zax burst into the first door of the cultist's cave. Lefty rushed in as well, his arrows instantly felling a cultist. With that, the battle had begun. The cultist leader seemed fond of using a Command spell, so I tried to stay well away from his sites. Unfortunately, he had Lefty disarm his bow immediately. Zax jumped in on the table where they were feasting and delivered a crushing blow to another cultist. The blades in Shadow's arms flung forth and began slicing and dicing. Inrah lit up the room with Magic Missles. Yuna was healing our wounds and launching painful bursts of sacred flame. I focused in on the leader with my psi-blades.

While the cultists didn't seem to be much of a match for us, it was their numbers that made this battle more dangerous as they began to flood in from a door to the east and south.

Zax became furious when Lefty's kill count started to soar with his bloodthirsty scimitar and I used my cloud giant's jaunt to blink behind the cultist leader to deliver the killing blow. Zax seems to almost have a personal vandetta against these cultists, is it something in her past? Regardless, we all let out a cheer when Zax was able to deliver the finishing blow to the final cultist! Victory was ours.

Scattered around the room was enough gold and silver to help with our depleted coin. I was worried for a moment I might need to borrow (or temporarily steal until I could replace) some money from our rich cleric! Yuna must have some royal upbringing with all that money she carries!

Unfortunately, while searching the bodies for loot, a few of us stumbled upon some cursed holy symbols that crumbled to sand upon touch, leaving us (me) with a strange sense of dread and daytime nightmares.

I don't know how long it would take to sleep this haunting off. Most unfortunate.

Thotham's Jounal #12

We spent the night in the abandoned servant quarters without interruption. Yuna performed sacred rights to cleanse the area and release the specters that had caused us problems.

In the morning we decided to head into the passage just off to the right. I went in looking to pick the locked door he had reported only to find it wasn't locked at all, it was rusted shut. Shadow responded simply by striking the handle off the door.

Inside we found what was a friendly apparition kept alive through a magical Tyr amulet. Much to our surprise, he was willing to talk with us and thanked us for opening the door that hadn't been opened in near a century. He could barely move and when he did it was like dried meat peeling off his bed and shuffling across the floor. We asked him his purpose among other questions, but when I mentioned Strahd, he seemed to flare with holy magic at the mere mention.

We told the undead paladin that we were searching for an artifact for Strahd so he could send us back to our home, being adventurers in a different dimension. When we told him it was a small orb with a dragon claw that he was searching for, he seemed confused at why it was that particular artifact he would want out of the myriad of powerful, evil artifacts in the castle's vault. All he could recall of the artifact was that it was something used to increase your powers, but not strength.

We continued our discussion about Strahd and he painted a very different picture than the Strahd we had encountered. Our Strahd wasn't a fearsome warrior, but a very tired and depressed ruler with perhaps one too many wives.

Eventually our undead paladin expressed his wish to be freed from this plane of existence. He said he'd help us retrieve that (and only that) artifact as long as we promised to release his spirit so he would finally see his rest (and not reanimate). Yuna obliged, taking the amulet of Tyr and saying his final rights. He soon vanished into dust but left us with a map to help guide us to the castle vault. He also mentioned that we should let "Liz" a kind child's specter in the castle know that he had left to return to his peace.

Following our newly acquired map we came to what the map said was a secret door. Investigating the area, I was able to ascertain that there were two bricks (one near the door, and one farther down a hallway) we needed to push simultaneously. I recruited Lefty to help, and we pressed both bricks in at the same time. When we did so, the bricks magically folded away as if under some enchantment and revealed our passageway.

Much to our surprise the passageway beyond looked absolutely spotless without a speck of dust. It seemed suspicious given the age of the castle, but we made our party's formation and proceeded down the hallway. Shadow suddenly stopped us in our tracks as he sensed something strange in front of us. I summoned my telekinesis to hover a torch up past the party, but when it reached a certain depth, it immediately extinguished. Zax handed Inrah a coin, and she cast a light spell upon it and then threw it forward where it stuck in mid-air, shimmering and suspended. That's when Zax remembered the tales of gelatinous cubes!

Lefty fired arrows that dissolved inside the cube. Shadow backed away fearing the acid inside as Inrah lit both Shadow and the encroaching cube with a colorful explosion of Faerie Fire. Surprisingly, I discovered these jelly-like creatures aren't completely mindless as my psychic daggers pierced and damaged it. Shadow, in lead, was scrambling to back away from the corrosive wall as it moved toward him as it was trying to envelope him. Zax threw fiery oil upon it in a last-ditch effort, filling the hallway with thick smoke if only for a few moments until it was extinguished. Finally, a third arrow from Lefty pierced the cube to the point where it collapsed, oozing upon the floor in front of us.

We descended further down the hallway, down a spiral staircase, down another longer hallway until we came upon a door of extraordinary workmanship. None of us had ever seen a door quite to this magnitude. If we could have looted the door and melted it down, surely it would have been worth more than what was beyond. Made of adamantine and inlaid with silver and gold, I sat dumbfounded at the sheer audacity of the door ... so much so I couldn't find a way to even open it. Luckily Inrah flew upwards and noticed a keyhole that lay between the frames in a curious position.

As we used the key the paladin had given us, suddenly a blast of electricity shocked its way through Inrah, sending her reeling backwards. I took another look at the door and this time I saw its devious nature. Trapped four different ways! 2 mechanical traps and 2 divine arcane traps!

I was able to disarm the two mechanical traps after some inspecting. One would have flooded the chamber with water. Another would have released ceiling tiles to crush whoever was underneath. As for the divine traps, Zax was able to align their righteousness to the doorway and finish turning the key without disturbing the divine energies.

The big surprise here was that there was another key, inside the key! This time I used my psychic bolstered knack to track down five more keyholes at the end of the hallway leading to the door. Again, 2 of the locks were mechanically trapped while Yuna revealed 3 of the locks contained magic. Using my psychic bolstering again I was able to disarm the mechanical traps, which would have filled the hallway with fire incidentally. Shadow cast an identify spell upon the remaining locks and we found three schools of magic therein: transmutation, evocation, and conjuration. Thinking upon the possible results of opening traps dealing with evocation (a fiery end) and conjuration (possible teleportation somewhere unpleasant), we ascertained as a group that the transmutation effect was our best bet. We turned the second key, and ... success!

The giant door retracted, and what we found behind was ... strangely tempting. We had promised our undead paladin guide to only leave with the singular artifact, but there beyond the door wasn't a museum full of powerful, and most likely cursed, magic items. As an example, we could feel anger coming from a great axe. Zax practically had to be pulled away from a holy sword. 

Eventually we came upon the artifact we were seeking. Shadow quickly grabbed it and put it in his pouch, laying aside any fears of magical retribution. 

Walking out of the vault, the door shut behind us, and the key collapsed, disappearing into the floor. We had won our prize!

As we made our way back out of the castle, we stumbled upon "Liz" being tormented by a ghoul. We dispatched the ghoul without as much as a scream from it. Liz saw Yuna holding her old friend's amulet of Tyr and asked if he was gone. Yuna might have made a new mischievous spirit friend, fond of tugging on Inrah's wings. 

Thotham's Journal #11

I separated from the group into the mists fearing mist walkers who might also be sought after by shadow master guild members -- it was the only explanation for being taken suddenly from Neverwinter into somewhere so unfamiliar and dark.  Even in daytime here, the place we have found ourselves in is a world of shadow.

I followed the group from several yards behind, sticking to the shadows, barely beyond the edges, looking for my hunters. I watched from a distance as the group went through a large gate that indicated our location. We are in Barovia! This is the place the common Neverwinter citizen would dismissively call a fairy tale horror (I suppose in the same way, the Shadow master Guild might be called the same), but here we are!

The group was contacted by the local lord of this land, Strahd was his name. He asked the group to seek out a castle in the middle of Lake Zarovich where something of his was misplaced. Again, trailing behind the group, I watched as they obtained a seer reading from what could only be classified as traveling lycanthropes? I'm not sure if anyone can be trusted here.

Once I was sure we weren't being pursued I rejoined the party on their journey to Lake Zarovich. It was good to be back with my old companions, plus a new member who had joined us. As we walked, I briefly got to know Yunaesa, or Yuna, for short. A high elven Life Cleric skilled in the healing arts and a welcome addition to the team.

As we walked along the trail, Inrah kept watch above, but it seemed a struggle for her as giant bats would swoop at her if she went above the tree line. She did spot a horrific looking three-armed deathly looking troll who moved into the road about 100 yards out from us and blocked our path. I slipped into the shadows and moved ahead establishing a psychic link with the being. It was dark and empty in its mind except for one thought, food. Shadow was making his way toward the troll when I grabbed a ration and floated it toward him with my telekinesis. He grabbed the food fiercely and began to grossly stuff it in his maw.

As Shadow passed by the beast, his thoughts changed to "not food." Clearly our warforged friend was not seen as a threat. Inrah risked the bats above and flew safely out of its range unnoticed. Lefty snuck by unnoticed. Yuna decided she could also stroll past, but I heard in the troll's mind "food" to which I quickly responded, "Not food!" This confused the troll as he looked around thinking the trees were talking to him. With Yuna safely sprinting past the threat, I broke the psychic link with a friendly, if not sarcastic, "goodbye." The troll, infuriated we had tricked our way past him, hurled a rock at Shadow to no avail. Our favorite Monk deftly dodged the boulder that was headed straight for his head!

Soon we found ourselves walking through another gate similar to the one we walked through as we entered through the mists. It appeared to be an old war-torn ground now abandoned, and strangely consecrated. You could feel the goodness in the area. I turned to Yuna to ask if she felt what I was feeling. Yuna winked and said, you don't need me to tell you what you feel on consecrated ground. We all feel it here. As we proceeded further, pains of old guilt rose within each of us. Particularly fresh on our minds was not knowing the true fate of our old companion, Sai, the druid. Should we have jumped into the pit after him, sealing all our fates? He seems to be the only one of us that could somehow survive that fall . . . transformed into a bug or some such druid trick. Still, it was a collapsed dungeon that we didn't see him escape after being whisked away in the mists.

Eventually we saw Lake Zarovich and the castle the lord of this land had sent us to explore. The water of this lake was strangely crystal clear with patches of moss on the surface. The drawbridge leading to the castle was crushed in its center point and collapsed in the middle. At first we considered row boats from Inyah's cloak of many things. But those boats could only hold 2 persons at most. The drawbridge seemed to be the most sensible way to enter the castle.

Seeing the gap was roughly 30 feet at its lowest point, I ran forward and teleported across the bridge. The far side was a little slippery, but I managed to maintain my footing and make it to the other side. Inrah flew over to me, and I tied a well-constructed knot on a pillar to the side. First to cross with our rope handhold was Yuna. Unfortunately, the cleric (not the most athletic or acrobatic of us), lost her footing and ended up in the water, which now stirred with motion as something "reptilian" dove in from the far side.

Lefty began to cross and scooped up the soaking Yuna and made it to the other side just as the giant maw of a crocodile bit the water where she had floundered. Last to cross, now knowing the water was infested with biting jaws, was Shadow. He had no issues beginning to cross (it was like watching a circus acrobat) but almost slipped in at the end much like I had, but his large, metallic and wooden feet smashed into the side and almost created a patch of stairs for us to use the next time we had to cross. To those ends, we left our rope and proceeded into the castle.

The castle itself was ruined. Just our luck. If not a ruined and abandoned church, it's a ruined and abandoned castle. We all set about searching for entrances. I discovered two entrances, using my psi-bolstered knack for investigation, one that appeared to be a servant's entry and another that was an entry for the old barracks.  Shadow, on the other hand, noticed something that was even more intriguing! Down a well, there was a strange doorway about 30 feet down! Shadow jumped in and scraped one automaton hand down the side of the well to slow fall, but heavy from his form, sunk even deeper down into the well. when he surfaced, he had an old dirty rag on his head, but a few extra coin in his hand from scraping old wishes off the bottom.

The rest of us followed and found a short, 5-foot tunnel we could enter the castle through. We found ourselves in what appeared to be an old church storage room full of rotted and worthless goods, but there was a door that led us further down. Coming to a fork, we decided to take the "clockwise" path and headed left. As we proceeded down the hallway, suddenly Shadow was struck by an undead specter floating through the walls! We sprinted down the pathway as Shadow found two doors. One barred, one that needed only a strike from his fist to open.

Entering the room, the specters attacked again! I was able to shatter one with my psychic blades. Yuna was also successful by casting evil out with searing pains from her holy rebukes. The undead turned and screamed as they ran. One of the specters above us in the ceiling, which had also taken a firebolt and an arrow from Inrah and Lefty, splattered from Yuna's rebuke.

Unfortunately, the third specter, now away from Yuna's holy aura, came charging back, directly at Inrah . . . who had thrown a taunt in its direction. Inrah plunged a knife into the shadowed form, and that's when things got a little messy . . . . Shadow punched at the specter and fumbled his shot, slamming his fist into Inrah, knocking her unconscious. I stabbed at the specter and fumbled my shot, stabbing Shadow with a psychic blade, striking with unusual precision. Luckily my second shot against the specter rang true and it disappeared into dust from the blow.

We should work more on our close combat maneuvers as a group! Thank goodness Yuna was there to patch us up with her healing staff.

We'll clear out the three dead bodies we found murdered here and hole up for a long rest. Who knows what terrors tomorrow will bring?!