3.2 YOUR FRIENDS HAD TO SAVE YOU, IMBECILE! (Milestone - 4th Level!)

SESSION DATE: November 11, 2023
PRESENT: Maltrixxian, Zorak, Nyrael, Freya, Wesson Smith, Zugg Zugg, Valric, Levo Thyroxine, Thrahn

Deep Dive

![[Maltrixxian - 3.2 YOUR FRIENDS HAD TO SAVE YOU, IMBECILE!.wav]]

Adventure Photos

World Anvil Journal

I'm not used to traveling with such a large group of adventurers, but the job at hand requires all the help we can muster. We've been briefed on the kind of power that the three artifacts could give to Brother Abbendis should his ritual succeed. We are NOT going let that happen. Each of the three artifacts is powerful by itself, but when combined the power granted could be untold. We are to make our way to Castle Drakenhoff and stop it at all costs.

The time spent travelling goes by uneventfully. I was too focused on the task at hand to get to know my fellow party members at all. As long as they can each pull their weight, I don't care who I'm with. Luckily I didn't have to worry too much about them. Myself, though? I'm finding it difficult to stay motivated during combat sometimes, but still I push through with the help of my friends.

We arrive at the castle at night. After some time scouting around the fortress, we decide going through the front gates is our best bet. Don't want to be too suspicious. We can see through the higher windows that Abbendis's plans are already in motion what with all the flashing lights. We may have just made it in time. It's time to begin our infiltration.

Freya's minion scouts ahead and above. It finds a wide-open courtyard that seems innocuous enough, but we know things can change quickly. Zorak noticed a lever several feet past the gates. Wesson devises a plan to use his rope and pitons to pull the lever. Valric provides a second set of eyes to guide Wesson to the lever. The plan works flawlessly, and just like that, we're in.

The moment we enter through the gates, a mysterious figure appears on the balcony above the courtyard. Wesson tries to continue to the large doors at the top of the short set of steps while Levo attempts to make conversation with the figure. Nyrael, on the other hand, perceived his materialization act as a sign of hostility and attempts to cast Sleep on the man. Unfortunately this didn't work as the figure vanished as quickly as he appeared. Just then, we feel the ground beginning to shake as several burrowing kruthiks, some young, some adults, appear from the ground below leaving holes the size of each of their bodies. Game on.

Everyone shows their worth in this fight. As I mentioned before, I attempted to do so, but I failed. I'm not as well prepared as I thought I was. I was quickly surrounded and overwhelmed. Zugg Zugg came to help, for which I was greatly appreciative. As much as I hate to admit it, Dispater's power allows me to command the battlefield a bit by allowing Dispater's commanding power to course through my allies' veins, allowing them to attack when they perhaps otherwise wouldn't be able to do so. This seemed to turn the tide of battle in my -- no, our -- favor as Zugg Zugg, Wesson and Zorak were able to quickly make an attack on the surrounding kruthiks. Wesson was able to land a good hit on the adult kruthik near me with his hand mortar. It ended up hurting me in the process, but it set fire to the grease pile next to me, dispatching any kruthiks within in short order. I may have barely survived, but I am eternally grateful for having these kind folks at my side. It proves that Dispater's evil power can be used for good.

We continue into the castle itself where we once again meet the mysterious figure. We find him sitting down at a dining table. I stand by some nearby pristine doors while the others use their diplomatic skills to get the information we need to continue with our mission. I can hear the conversation, but I'm listening for movement beyond the doors. After a few minutes of not hearing anything, I pay closer attention to the conversation, remaining by the doors just in case things escalate. The figure offers to tell us what is to come in exchange for magical items we have. Wesson offers his hand mortar, sans ammunition, which the figure accepts. He tells us that the master (Abbendis) has sealed off all paths save for one. The room beyond the doors is one he calls the Room of Dichotomy, though the dichotomy is a lie. Levo offers his Goggles of Night, which the figure also accepts. He then tells us the false dichotomy is such that if we mention that "there is always a third option" to the stone gargoyle in the next room, a hidden, secret door will open, allowing us to bypass Abbendis's puzzles that we would have had to waste time solving without this information.

Valric then asks the figure what he's getting out of handing over this information, to which the figure replies, in short saying it's about self preservation. He then stands, lifts up his shirt slightly, and points to a point on his body just above his hip. He asks Wesson to use his pistol to shoot him in that spot. I'm suspicious of this ask, but all I can discern is that he's using Wesson to further his yet incomplete plans. For what? I don't know. But Wesson obliges him. In an instant, thunderous crack, the projectile fired from Wesson's pistol lodges itself deep within the figure's body, knocking him off balance and into a nearby crate along the wall. The figure stumbles, falling unconscious. After Wesson looks for signs of life, Levo walks up and removes the head from the once-whole body. I shrug my shoulders, asking myself why he made it so easy, then suggested we take our belongings back before continuing. The party agrees, getting some other nifty items from the broken crate in the process.

Upon entering the Room of Dichotomy, it is exactly as described to us by the now-lifeless, and headless, man. Levo takes the lead, stands upon the altar, and speaks the phrase "There is always a third option" toward the stone gargoyle. We hear a quick sound followed by shifting stone. Indeed, a doorway opens.

Before us now is a long hallway, at the end of which is a blue portal. Valric quickly checks for traps and determines it's safe for us to pass. Just before going through the portal, we make sure to take stock of our abilities and prepare for whatever lies beyond. Then we enter.

The portal drops us into a large, cavernous stone room filled with large, green crystalline structures in each corner atop wooden platforms. From each of these crystals extends gigantic chains leading to one large green crystalline structure at the middle of the opposite end of the room. From this large crystal emits a cone of chromatic light. The light shines upon a central blue altar of sorts. Within the light stands Brother Abbendis himself, pacing around feverishly. He says he didn't expect to see us THIS quickly thanks to us bypassing his devilish puzzles. We may just have the upper hand thanks to our mysterious dead friend.

Wesson walks to one of the nearby wooden platforms and uses a pillow as a firestarter. It's now just a matter of time before the wooden platform crumbles, bringing down the pulsating crystal and its attached chain in a cacophonous bang. The fight is on.

Abbendis uses all the power at his disposal to prevent our intrusion from ruining his precious ritual. Levo just wanted to take notes on the ritual being the scholar he is, but the only notes he'll have the chance to take are those about how we defeated the traitorous mastermind behind it all. Wesson's plan works flawlessly yet again, and down comes the crystal and chain, preventing the ritual from completing.

At the same time, Brother Abbendis seems to have been defeated, but not before nearly metamorphosing into a chain devil. We know that had that happened, we would have been done for. Our efforts would've been for naught, but thanks to this party -- this team -- we prevented him from materializing and leading to who-knows-what. Hopefully we shall never find out.

Now it's back to relative safety in Urithiru to gather our thoughts and reflect on all that we've done to see this mission through.

Mission completed.

Private Notes

• We travel to Castle Drakenhoff in order to take down Brother Abbendis's right hand man as Brother Abbendis has double crossed his brothers in order to become more powerful.
• We arrive outside the castle at night.
• There are smooth walls with very few crenellations, about a 15-foot-tall battlement with gates on the front.
• We scout as much as we can. We see some flashing lights from the top of green and blue, probably electricity. No obvious entry points or hidden doors that we can find.
• Freya sends her familiar up and over the gates to see what lies beyond the closed gates. There is an open courtyard and a statue. The ground seems disturbed, with crates blocking vision nearby as well. There is a platform large enough for one or two people to stand on 20 feet high.
• Zorak sees a lever just inside the gates. Wesson uses his rope and pitons to pull the lever by throwing it over the wall. Valric provides a second set of eyes to assist. Gates open!
• As we enter the courtyard, we hear a door swing open from the balcony. A figure steps forward and says "Ah, guests. It's been so long. What can we do for you here at Castle Drakenhoff?"
• Levo tries to engage with the figure by stating he's here to witness a ritual. At the same time, Wesson continues further into the courtyard, and Nyrael tries to cast Sleep on the figure. On seeing Nyrael doing this, the figure reacts by disappearing/teleporting out of sight.
• We start hearing the sound of earth being moved. Suddenly, some enemies appear from out of the ground leaving a hole the size of their body. There are two Adult Kruthiks and several Young Kruthiks. INITIATIVE!!!
  • At the end of the round, both Adult Kruthiks emit a chittering sound, summoning more Young Kruthiks. Great!
  • At the end of the round, the one remaining Adult Kruthik chitters again, spawning yet more Young Kruthiks.
  • After Maltrixxian nearly goes down a few times, combat is over.
• The mysterious figure is back beckoning us inside after being impressed by our ability to dispatch the enemies sprung on us.
• We accept the invitation and enter the castle.
• Down the hall we see a few doors, but they look broken. One set of pristine double doors lines the hall. The figure is sitting at one of the tables in the distance. The area is lit by flickering flames.
• Wesson engages in conversation with the figure complimenting him on the decor. The figure thanks him, and asks if we are to be joining him. Zugg once again reiterates he's here for to witness the ritual.
• Most of the party joins the figure at the tables. Mal instead, suspicious of their intentions, stands leaning against the wall next to the double doors listening for any movement or sounds coming from beyond them.
• The figure is willing to barter with us for information about what we are to face ahead. As he's telling us that the master is close to completing his ritual, we suddenly hear a clap of what sounds like thunder nearby. He says "He's a bit closer to finishing it than I thought."
• Wesson offers his hand mortar to the figure in return for a piece of information. The figure accepts, saying "The master has sealed off every path, but one. The room we are about to enter is called the Room of Dichotomy. But it's also a lie. Let's just say it's a false dichotomy." Wesson then offers one piece of ammunition, but the figure declines, claiming his interests are more arcane in nature.
• Zugg pulls out a stick of dynamite as an offering for more information. The figure declines.
• He looks toward Freya's bag of holding, asking if she has anything to part with. She offers a selection of scrolls. The figure declines this as well as it's something that can be purchased with money easily.
• He looks to Levo asking about his Goggles of Night. Levo asks what kind of info he can provide. The figure says he can save us the trouble of answering a couple riddles. Levo accepts, giving his Goggles of Night to the figure.
• The figure says "When you enter the doors, you will see an altar, a gargoyle on the wall, and a door on either side of the room. You could try to solve the puzzle in both rooms, or you can simply stand on the altar and speak to the gargoyle, telling it that you don't believe there is only off/on, black/white, two choices, and that there is always a third option. And that will open the way."
• Valric asks what this figure is getting for helping us. He says, basically, self preservation. He looks toward Wesson, stands up, lifts up his shirt and points just above his hip, as if motioning for Wesson to shoot him. Mal senses that this request isn't just a simple ask for death. He's not wanting death. He's using this to help him further his plans. He's not done yet.
• The figure falls back into the nearby crates, unconscious. Mal suggests looting him to get our belongings back. Levo grabs his goggles back, and Wesson takes back his hand mortar.
• In the box he knocked over are some goodies.
• Levo cuts off the head of the figure. We find a dagger on him as well. And now we have a head in the party loot. Nice.
• As we enter the nearby room, there is some Infernal text on the wall. Mal speaks Infernal, but with his low intelligence, he is unable to read it.
• Levo walks onto the altar and says to the gargoyle "There is always a third option." A door opens under the gargoyle.
• After determining there is nothing out of the ordinary with this door, Valric opens the door. At the end of the long hallway, there is a glowing portal.
• We prepare some spells and whatnot before entering the portal. Then we step through.
• As we step through it, we end up at the bottom of some stairs.
• This room has vaulted ceilings of about 50'. There is a number of altars. Brother Abbendis stands in the middle blue altar. There are raised 10' tall wooden platform, on top of which exists a crystal structure. From those crystals to the upper crystal in the room are large chains sparkling with the same energy. There is a beam of chromatic energy lighting the altar with Brother Abbendis.
• Abbendis is pacing, aware of our presence. He says "Well I didn't expect to see you THIS soon. I must give you my praise for getting past the puzzles so quickly." Energy arcs as we walks around the altar.
• Wesson attempts to light the southeastern wooden platform on fire. Abbendis says "I would appreciate it if you wouldn't do that." INITIATIVE!!!
  • Abbendis uses a legendary action to teleport towards Wesson.
  • Abbendis is also able to use a legendary action to strike a foe.
  • Maltrixxian believes the colored light and/or the altar on which Abbendis started this encounter on might have given him some kind of benefit. Mal enters the light on the altar, but the effects, if any, are unknown to him as of now.
  • Abbendis is also able to stun foes using his legendary actions.
  • Maltrixxian decides to try what Wesson did and use his flask of oil to spread flammable oil on the wooden platform in the opposite corner of the room. Then he plans on throwing a torch to light it on fire.
  • Before Mal gets the chance to do that, Thrawn appears to have been able to down Abbendis. As he falls, we start to see a flicker of change in his body. Even though we think he's dead, he convulses, appearing to blink/morph into an image of a red devilish creature. He begins flashing like this faster and faster. Just before it appears the new form will materialize, the platform Wesson set alight collapses, the chain falling to the ground. All we're left with is Abbendis lying apparently lifeless on the ground.
  • Combat over.
• For the sake of brevity, we said we made it back to Urithiru without any issue and were able to long rest and sell stuff.

That's all for this session!