Gaming

4e Summary – Game Session 7 (The Dead Walk)

Douven Staul and Ninaran arrive at the Keep and tell you about the situation in the village. Essentially undead are overrunning the country side and have the village under siege. The Winterhaven Regulars are keeping the village secure. The Militia is saving villagers on farms and bringing them to village. Some villagers have already been captured. Sister Linora and Eilian the Old have been captured looking for the source of the undead.

Douvon and Ninaran scouted out the graveyard and saw that Ninaran’s family was also held there. They are sacrificing villagers to power the ritual to raise the dead. Ninaran would have tried a rescue everyone but he lacked his families weapons.

Douvon and Ninaran ask for the parties help in rescuing the villager’s. Ninaran tells you there are at least a dozen undead in the graveyard (last he saw) and more around the village and it appears one priest of Orcus. The graveyard is a relic of a town abandoned after the fall of the old empire. The graveyard is four hours travel from the Keep back towards Winterhaven.

The squad agrees to save the village by destroying the ritual that is raising the dead. They weigh the choice of leaving the Keep but they decide that saving the village is more important. The squad decides to take Ninaran’s help and give him his weapons and gear back.

Upon exiting the Keep you notice a pile of Goblin bodies piled from Lennie and Will. Apparently they had ambushed a group of Goblins that were returning from raiding the country side. At the graveyard you confront a large number of zombies and a priest of Orcus. Kitsune is successful in disrupting the ritual that was producing the undead. During that time the rest of the group kills the undead, again. You successfully rescue Sister Linora, Eilian the Old and Ninaran’s children. Ninraan’s wife and a few other villagers were already killed to power the ritual. Mathos callously makes a joke about Ninaran’s wife being dead after which Ninaran shoots Mathos and storms off with his stunned children. An awkward silence follows and the others don’t interfere or offer healing to Mathos.

The group then deduces they have disrupted the threat to the village and travel back to the Keep. They arrive late and find Lennie and Will have killed more goblins that were in the area. You set a guard and sleep through the evening. Just before dawn a patrol of Goblins attack the ruined farm house that you are sleeping in. During the battle Mathos transforms into a walking were-tiger and attacks the goblins. After defeating the goblins part of the group enters the decrepit building to find Splug running around with a large spoon. Apparently while the battle was going on the Boggle that has been stalking you decided to steal the bedrolls. Splug tried to slap the hands appearing through portals in the room but he failed from stopping the Boggle.

Notable Characters for this session:
Sister Linora (Priestess of Avandra – Goddess of Change, Luck, Trade and Travel)
Eilian the Old – Old farmer and regular at Wrafton’s Inn.
Ninaran – Elf Hunter, once spy in Winterhaven after his families capture.
Douvon Staul – Villager of Winterhaven and treasure hunter
Will – Best friend of Shawna (Human Hunter)
Lennie – Large simple minded friend of Will and all villagers.

This session you decided to take on Splug the Goblin as a minion. Mathos keeps a close eye on him and was given permission to make him into a hat, if the group thinks Splug is trying to betray them.

“You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Theress umm, rat-kabobs, rat creole, rat gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple rat, lemon rat, coconut rat,  pepper rat, rat soup, rat stew, rat salad, rat and potatoes, rat burger, rat sandwich…” You cut him off at some point but you are convinced Splug loves to cook and eat rat.

With the information Splug provides, you decide to enter after Balgron the Fat (Goblin Chief) through the secret door in his room. Mathos hears Balgron snoring and rushes in to hack at him with his axe. Mathos injurs Balgron badly but another squad member follows up to knock him out. Everyone then proceeds to work through fighting the other goblins in a very tight corridor fight. The group searches the rooms and finds 600 pieces of gold along some magical bracers that assist with healing. Quinn and Mathos question Balgron after healing him enough to gain consciousness. Balgron tells you the secret pass phrase to gain entrance to the second level, “And life fails in the dark.” He also tells you about the area with the zombies to the west, a tomb to the south of that and that the stairs to the next level are on the north end of that room. On the upper level there is the head priest of Orcus (Kalalrel). There are also some other priests of Orcus, undead and hobgoblins. Balgron also confirms the story about the Kruthik lair to the south east behind the barred doors. Upon sighting Splug, Balgron declares him a lazy spineless no-good and demands that he is locked up again. You all decide to knock Balgron unconscious again and flip the bed over before leaving him.

After departing Balgrons rooms you went zombie hunting. The zombies did the best they could but the group quickly defeated them. There were wards on the ground which made the more difficult obstacle hoping around the room.Mathos accidentally stepped on one which caused him to run in fear from it for a turn. That’s about where we left off in the game for the evening.

Some players were asking what was the real goal in the keep…
As mentioned… a letter from Kalalrel (Scion of Orcus) mentioned that when Orcus could enter the material plane that the village of Winterhaven would serve as food for his emerging armies.

In addition three members of the Women’s Circle had visions confirming destruction to the village if someone didn’t stop the portal from opening and killing all the cultists of Orcus. They didn’t know why you were chosen but that you were the ones that needed to do the job. If you fail, you will likely not have a home to return to. You stopped the cult from getting an artifact but that seems to only be a delay to the plans.

Here is a little more general information for some of those knowledge checks people have made:

Goblins are small humanoid monsters. They vary in height from about 3 to 3 ½ feet (91 – 106 cm) and weigh 40 to 45 pounds (21 – 24 kg). They walk upright even though their arms nearly reach their knees. Their eyes vary from red to yellow and are usually dull and glazed. They have a broad nose that sits on a flat face with pointed ears and a wide mouth. Their mouth contains small, but sharp fangs. Their skin pigment ranges from a deep red through nearly any shade of orange to yellow. Members of the same tribe tend to have the same skin color. Based on their ability scores and the encumbrance rules the average goblin would be able to lift about 60 pounds over his head.

The kruthik is somewhat hard to describe. It is insectoid, at least vaguely, despite having only four limbs. It has a long, thin body, roughly 3 or so feet long with a serrated spine, and its color ranges from grey, to black, to steel, to silver, to pale green, always with a shiny and metallic look. While the neck, sides and tail of the kruthik are bare, the legs, head and back are protected by spiny, jointed plates which eventually grow to protect the full body. In the unprotected parts of a kruthik’s body, organic lights of a color corresponding to that of the kruthik’s body glow. The kruthik has razor sharp teeth, and a pair of mandibles. In addition to its four major legs, the kruthik also has a much smaller pair of limbs hanging from its chest just a little back from the front two major ones.
Hobgoblins resemble large, muscled humans, their bodies covered in coarse fur with red-brown or gray skin and red or orange faces. Large males have blue or red noses, and may have beards and male-pattern baldness. Hobgoblin eyes are dark brown or yellowish, and their teeth tend to be yellow. They are lean and tall, averaging six and a half feet in height and weighing around 200 pounds. Their muscles are designed more for agility than brute strength, and they have been described as having almost feline dexterity. They specialize in moving without sound. Hobgoblins can see in the dark up to 60 feet (18 m) away. Hobgoblins prefer blood-red garments with black-tinted leather. Their weapons are kept highly polished and in good repair. Many hobgoblins sport tattoos, deep scars gouged and burnt into their flesh meant to display their tolerance for pain rather than for art’s sake. Some hobgoblins sport piercings for the same reason, though they always keep their noses unobstructed. Their hair is often braided with jewelry carved from the bones of slain enemies. Any other adornments worn are also meant to call attention to their endurance or battle prowess.

Animals as well as humanoids can be turned into undead, most commonly a zombie. Undead are commonly immune to disease and poison. They are also resistant to necrotic damage and are vulnerable to radiant damage. I’ve decided to treat all zombies as having the critical hit (head shot) vulnerability just because it’s fun.

The fourth edition Monster Manual describes Orcus as “one of the most powerful demons in the Abyss – powerful enough to threaten gods”. It describes him as a “foul and corpulent humanoid creature who has powerful goat legs and a desiccated head similar to that of a ram. His great wings stir up a reeking cloud of diseased air. He seems somewhere between life and death – his sore-ridden body suggests diseased life, but his head and glowing red eyes suggest undeath. His thick, spiny tail is in constant motion.” Aside from the Demon Lord of Undeath and the Demon Prince of the Undead, he also has the title of the Blood Lord.

Departing Camp
You left your camp (And Donkey) in the hands of Will and Lennie. On the outskirts of the camp you discovered Boggle Tracks. Which while disturbing, you did not find anyway to do anything about it so you continued on.

Encounter in the Goblin Guard Room
Heading down the stairs you encoutered a Goblin taunting you. After chasing him around and nearly falling in a trap, you defeated him and his fellow guards. The pit trap is full of rats and there is talk of torching them but you leave them behind.

Encounter in the Excavation Site
Next you went to the top of some stairs and fought some goblins and Guard Drakes on some stairs. It didn’t turn out as well for my Guard Drakes as I had hoped. While in that area you discovered a secret door but left the area around it alone.

Encounter in the Torture Room
You later discovered a torture chamber and defeated the goblins there. Inside a cell you found a Goblin named Splug. Splug begs for the party to release him and he will show them where the goblin leader, one Balgrum the Fat, is laired.  He offers to carry the party’s equipment, make fresh roasted rat, and generally help them as best he can in return for his release. The party questions him and he seems to be sincere. There is talk of locking him up and leaving him behind but we didn’t get a decision before the end of the evening.

So much happened in the village, it’s difficult to keep track.

As you came to the gates the Winterhaven Regulars stopped you and asked you to wait for Captain Kelfem. Captain Kelfem listened to your story minus mention of the spy in the village. He took procession of the prisoners and the ears. He also gave you a shiny corpral medallion for the squad to choose their own leader. Ket (Philips character) was chosen.
You were then brought before Lord Padraig who listened to your complete story. He gave you a reward and paid for a night at the inn to rest up. Ket was falling asleep on his feet but kept on with the rest of the group.

The group visited the shop Marcus (Kets uncle) runs. He haggled with you over the prices you wanted for selling items and sold you any non-magical equipment you needed. Money was shared out and some items were called dibs on. Ket proceeded to pass out on his bed (He hadn’t slept the entire time).

Everyone else got rooms at the inn and gathered in the common room for a meal and drinks. While there, the group questioned Valthrun about the ruined keep (where the cultists are) and listened to the tale about it.

It was on a grisly night about eighty years ago that the
commander of the keep garrison, Sir Keegan, put into
motion the events that led to the keep’s downfall.
Perhaps the Shadow Rift’s malign influence is too
strong to resist. Maybe Sir Keegan was an insane monster
driven by demons we may never understand. Whatever
the case, at the stroke of midnight on that fateful day, Sir
Keegan began to systematically slaughter every resident of
the keep. His own wife and children were first to fall to his
blade, then his trusted advisors, and finally many of the
soldiers under his command. Sir Keegan was too skilled
for any one soldier to defeat, yet eventually the garrison
managed to respond with an organized defense. Although
many brave soldiers died, they managed to drive the mad
knight into the passages beneath the keep and finally dispatch
him.

The keep became notorious for a time. As one of the
last bastions of the fallen empire, there was no one to
order it back into service. So, it was abandoned, feared for
a time, and eventually, more or less forgotten. An earthquake
a few years later collapsed the upper towers and
walls, and turned the place into a ruin of tumbled stone.
Rumors persist of great treasures buried beneath the
keep, yet few have dared explore the passages over the
year. Sir Keegan’s ghost is said to roam the corridors
beneath the ruins, wailing in grief over the tragedy of his
life. The people of Winterhaven avoid the place, and the
mere mention of Shadowfell Keep is considered bad luck
by many of the farmers and villagers.

After hearing the story the group moved on to Ninaran and began questioning him. While talking Shawna (Didi) decided to rifle through his backpack and then his cloak. He caught her when it came to the cloak and opened fire with his crossbow on the group. Mathos charged in with the battle cry, “I have never been more drunk!” While he fought hard, the group prevailed and knocked him unconscious. You found a note on him that said, “Get better results or else your family will regret your failings.” The group tied him up and left him for questioning in the morning.

At four in the morning Ehlonna (Lavender’s Mom) and several other members of the Women’s Circle woke Ket and brought him to the Inn’s Common room and woke everyone else. They spoke to you about visions of great magic and heroes of legend returning and being dumb founded why all of you were chosen, yet you were. They questioned Ninaran and verified that his family was captured and that he was distraught and forced to spy on the village. They had stripped several magic items off of him that was shared out with the group. Some of the group voiced guilt over it but still took the things anyways.

The women’s circle then sent the group off after the cultist and warned of a calamity if you don’t destroy the cultist soon. By evening you arrived in the area of the Keep and camped off of the road to rest for the night before heading in.