Holy Hells Bells, we are back to our normal schedule. I am just happy to be back in black, I mean on schedule. In a battle of who has the biggest balls of them all, our group continues its adventure, and we are left wondering if the Money really does talk. Plus we got a Thunderwave! How fucking exciting is that??? Obviously, I have my own theme. I came across this interesting band’s renditions of songs that I enjoy. I hope that you enjoy as well.
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Tomb of Annihilation
Chapter 4 – Now You’re Playing With Power
With none of the mercenaries alive to interrogate, the group searched their bodies and found a large, rusty key. They were quick to learn that said key opened a grate leading into the sewers. In an abundance of caution, Xilix sent his trusty bat companion, Gryff, down into the sewers to scout. After Gryff reported back that the coast was clear, the party headed down into the sewers. The party traveled until they found a hidden room containing a desk and various crates. Said crates were obviously used to smuggle in awesome things to be sold on the black market.
Finding nothing of particular value in the crate room, the party continued until they came across a cart with a gold bracelet sitting inside. Assuming it was a trap, the party got ready to perform all manner of trap searching methods on the cart and the jewelry. Unfortunately, this was the first time the party realized that they didn’t have a rogue in the group. Ethyl said, “screw it, I need a new bracelet,” and pulled it out of the cart. Much to their surprise, nothing happened.
Despite the fact they obtained the loot with no danger to themselves, Compassion, who was leading the party down the single file sewers, decided this was the perfect opportunity to lecture the group on “dungeon safety.” Ironically, as he was just getting to “the good part of his lecture,” the distracted Compassion failed to notice the pressure plate that he was about to stand on. Upon hearing the “click” of the pressure plate triggering, Compassion attempted to jump out of the way. As he was wearing bulky metal armor, Compassion failed to dodge, and was brained by a hefty sized rock falling from the ceiling. The lecture ended then and there.
Using the tried and true method of “taking every left in a dungeon until you either reach your destination or finish making a circle,” the party eventually came to a room that contained more empty smuggling crates. On the other side of the room was a lever and a door. Having taken Compassion’s lecture to heart (prior to him taking it to the head), the group stood outside the room as Ethyl conjured a magic hand from the doorway to pull the lever.
As the lever was pulled down, a giant metal plate came slamming down from the ceiling, cutting the party off from the room. Listening closely at the plate, the party could hear water rushing into the room. Having avoided the cliché “water room death trap” the party members gave each other hi-fives while looking smugly at Compassion. Compassion, who was sure that he had a concussion at this point, just grunted out his approval to the party.
After the water receded from the room, Compassion went over to inspect the door. Before they could (attempt) to check for traps or even listen at the door, the door flung open, and Compassion was immediately stabbed twice, shot with an arrow, and hit in the face with a firebolt by the four smugglers waiting for them in the next room. Compassion fell to the ground dying.
Seeing Compassion laying on the ground dying, Hertz looked the two smugglers in front of him in the face and said, “if your troops up top had been smart enough to retreat, they could of warned you this was going to happen.” At this point Hertz again called upon the power of Talos and began surging with electricity. Pointing his finger forward, Hertz uttered the magical holy word “Boom” and a crack of thunder rang out. Upon the sound dissipating, the two smugglers who were not in the path of the Thunderwave saw that the two smugglers at the door had been reduced to bloodstains on the floor.
With their number cut in half, the remaining two smugglers dove behind some wooden barrels and began sniping at the party. It was at this point that Xilix had the genius to send Gryff the bat out with a flask of oil to drop on the barrels. Once the barrels had been doused, Xilix or Ethyl could strike the barrels with a firebolt to ignite them. What actually happened was Gryff flying into the room, throwing and completely missing the barrels with the flask, then then getting shot dead by the archer-smuggler.
Crying in anguish over the loss of his familiar, Xilix took a lot of painkilling drugs and ran into the room shooting firebolts akimbo like he was in a John Woo movie. While the smugglers were distracted, Hertz called upon the powers of Talos to heal Compassion’s wounds. Springing to his feet in an enraged fury, Compassion ran into the room, grabbed one of the barrels that had been set on fire during Xilix’s assault, and began beating the caster to death with it. Just before Compassion caved in the caster’s head, she and the archer surrendered.
During the negotiations it was agreed the two remaining smugglers would leave and the group would be free to loot the room. Aside from standard treasure, the group found two items of interest, the last piece of the amulet and a dinosaur egg. Tempest took the final piece of the amulet as she had all of the other pieces, and Compassion took the egg because, being half-demon in nature, he was a “natural incubator.”
Returning to the inn, the party reconvened in Xilix’s room where they reassembled the pieces of the Amulet, now fully forged into the Dreamer’s Amulet. Those with magical attunement could instantly feel the evil radiating from the Amulet. Hoping that such powerful magics could restore his memory, Xilix immediately began meditating with the Amulet in order to learn its secrets. With the rest of the party concerned by Xilix’s foolhardy actions, Compassion agreed to watch over him as Hetz, Tempest, and Ethyl went to speak with Sagi in the barroom.
Finding Sagi in the bar, the party was once again prepared to deal with a confusing, rambling, and drunk Sagi. Much to their surprise, Sagi was actually sober! Also much to their surprise, Sagi turned out to be less comprehensible when sober. After a 30-plus minute conversation in which Hertz had to resort to pantomiming and drawing pictures, Sagi told the party that if they had assembled the Dreamer’s Amulet they should bring it to Dina-Saur, member of the Order of the Triceratops branch of the Kepka society. Sagi insisted that Dina-Saur would have information on how the Amulet was related to the Death Curse.
Meanwhile, back in Xilix’s room, Compassion began to notice that the longer Xilix meditated with the Amulet, the deeper Xilix’s trance seemed to be, and the quieter the room became. After about 30 minutes of meditating with the amulet, Xilix had fully entered a black, subspace world. Despite the darkness, in the distance Xilix could see a form slithering in his direction. Soon after Xilix saw the figure, which appeared to be a giant snake-like creature.
As this being was no scarier than the worst of his hallucinations while high on particularly powerful drugs, Xilix tried to engage the snake-monster in conversation. When Xilix asked the monster who he was and what he wanted, the snake merely responded with a question, “what do you want? *hissss*”. Xilix truthfully responded, “knowledge and power.” The snake responded, “you are not worthy,” and proceeded to devour Xilix whole. Xilix awoke from the trance screaming.
Finding that the amulet would not bend to their will, the party agreed to meet with Dina-Saur and his Kepka Society brethren. When Sagi informed the party that they would find Dina-Saur running a local bathhouse, they became suspicious that Sagi was just pulling some elaborate prank on them. However, upon entering the bathhouse, they immediately saw a man in purple robes matching Dina-Saur’s description. Walking up to Dina-Saur, Compassion used the secret Kepka Society hand gesture taught to him by Sagi.
Excited to meet the adventurers that had assembled the Dreamer’s Amulet, Dina-Saur informed the party that he would be escorting them to the Kepka Society hideout, which turned out to be the abandoned warehouse from Reservoir Dogs. As they walked through the warehouse, Dina-Saur proceeded to drone on about various non-Amulet related things that bored Hertz.
While Hertz was looking around the room waiting for Dina-Saur to shut up, he saw that a nearby carpet seemed to bow inward. Curious, Hertz went over to inspect the carpet. Just as Hertz discovered that the carpet was concealing a pit trap, Dina-Saur rushed over and attempted to push Hertz in the pit. This cunning plan failed for two reasons, 1) Hertz wears like 300 pounds of metal armor, and 2) when at full power Hertz is basically living lightning. Upon touching Hertz armor, Dina-Saur was killed in a manner not dissimilar to the Joker’s joy buzzer attack.
Enraged that their leader had been bested so easily, the remaining cultists in the room prepared to attack. The party then proceeded to kill most of the cultists and their pet giant snake. While they did leave one cultist alive to interrogate, he answers mostly consisted of hissing sounds. Upon telling the group that the only thing waiting for them in the next room was death, Compassion threw the remaining cultist into the pit.
Does death await the party in the next room? Did Sagi betray the party? Find out next time on Tales from the Plunderbund Consortium.
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Like I wasn’t going to put a Nintendo commercial on this as well with a name of a chapter called “Now You’re Playing With Power.”
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