Stonehell: Beginning of a LONG week...

Session 78 was played on 9/16

Eiric, wizard 7 (Kat)
- men at arms (Mulligan, Borik, Verman)
- linkman (Dungforth)
- Ghost (dog)
Brie, wizard 4 (Apprentice to Eiric)
A-A-Ron, Thief 6 (Henchman)
Daryll, Cleric 6 (Henchman)
Orpheus, Human Fighter 6 (Henchman)
Karl, Dwarf 7 (Julia)
- Hobart (dog)
- men at arms (Maax, Dar)
- linkman (Gilcox)
Lex the Cheeseman, Fighter 4 (Henchman)
Koltic, Cleric 3 (Chris) - Stayed in town
Kili, Dwarf Cleric 3 (Matt)

Kili the dwarven cleric returns from his year plus long stint at the Temple of the 7 Corners ready to see what’s happened in the dungeon. On the flip side, Koltic remains in town to worship at the Porcelain Shrine.

Eiric hires Dungforth the torch bearer, and Mulligan and Borik, men at arms.

Karl hires Scotty the Engineer to come into the dungeon to fix the elevator.

The party makes its way safely down to the Asylum, but are once again faced with an encounter at Shoe Corner. 6 Heartless were stumbling along, the blue flames licking at their desiccated rib cages. The supernatural horror of it caused more than the usual terror, and Orpheus, A-A-Ron, Vermin, Borik, Mulligan, and Gilcox all ran in terror. Brie’s morale broke, and she ran after them! Darryl held up his holy symbol, and turned one of the monsters. Lex, Karl, and Kili charged in cutting down 3, while Darryl managed to turn 2 more.

Hoping that Orpheus and Brie would keep everyone together, Karl takes advantage of Scotty’s presence, and has him construct a tripwire trap. Once done, they head off to the elevator, and Scotty gets to work. Orpheus and Co. make their way back to the elevator safely, having only seen some goblins along the way. The hours pass by slowly, and Eiric decides to go visit Rocky, taking A-A-Ron, Kili, and Orpheus with her.

Rocky is thrilled to see them, and after chatting for a bit Eiric gets to her questions… with the help of Kili’s legal training.

1. What do stone elephants fear?

Where wizards once broke the natural laws, you will find the Elephant’s Terror.

2. How exactly, and using what accounts and magic, can this group of adventurers defeat Ka-Nefer while sustaining the LEAST damage possible?

Death rests uneasy. You’ve woken that which cannot sleep. Find the heart, and stab it.

3. In reference to waking that which cannot sleep, how do we find the heart in the riddle to stab it; more specifically what are the exact directions and measurements to get to the heart?

Where the Sect of the Rampant Green went too far, where their shadows burn eternal, where now grows hot and wild and the queen reigns, you'll find the heart.

They chat with Rocky a bit more, and then make their way back toward the elevator, encountering 8 skeletons on the way. Kili turns 7 of them, causing them to flee, while Orpheus turns the remaining one into bone dust.

Down in the Asylum, they run into a caravan of kobolds led by Kerish the rope maker who tells them that while sniveling Sniv took some of the kobolds out of Stonehell, more remain scattered about the dungeon.

Meanwhile, Scotty managed to disturb a pair of draco lizards who’d decided to nest in the machine room. While they got the jump on him, they were slow and Karl and Lex managed to get between him and them. Dar and Maax charged in right after. Karl manages to take the first out, but the second bites the arm off of Dar, who sprays blood everywhere and he falls. It swallows the arm, then bites down hard on Karl, piercing his armor. Sadly for the lizard, that put it’s neck within easy reach of Karl’s Badger Hammer. Darryl managed to save Dar from death, but the arm was lost.

After Eiric returned to the elevator, Esmalia showed up, telling them that the meeting with the Vampire Lord of Stonehell is on. She also tells them that the riddle that Rocky gave them probably relates to the hot house, and Queen Urushiol, but that she’s not sure what that has to do with Ka-Nefer.

In the hours of boredom, everyone starts chatting about what they want to do in the future. Orpheus admits that he’s been offered a seat on the city council, and after the business with Ka-Nefer is done with, he’s thinking about hanging up his sword. A-A-Ron thinks this is a GREAT idea. Lex, who isn’t ready to retire has his eye on a cheese shop. Brie wants to see what’s deeper in the dungeon.

After the wererat moved on, and Scotty finished with the elevator, Eiric sends Orpheus back to town for supplies with Scotty and Dar, and Darryl, who can’t stand the dwarven cleric. The rest of the party will keep watch on the elevator, making sure no one else tries to smash it.

Gains:
Kills: 8 skeletons, 6 Heartless, 2 draco lizards
Losses: Dar (medical retirement), Darryl (quitting the party)