Filmed in the Miracle of Skeletorama!
Written in Druidic:
I found this book in one of the stores in this place called a city. I’m told some people write the major events in their lives in these things. Sounds strange, but the elders told me I need to try to understand the rest of the world no mater how strange they are. This seems like a good place to start. So I bought this book and have been carrying it for about three weeks now while wandering in this forest I have called my home for many seasons. I’ve decided to start with the beginning, so here I go. I don’t know where I’m originally from. The Elders tell me I was found being raised with a pack of wolves. Being as that is a rare thing at best, they viewed it as a sign and decided to teach me their ways, beliefs and traditions. I learned how to survive in the wild and how to commune with nature itself. I was taught how to channel the divine energy of nature and one day, after a long and taxing ritual, Shadow walked into my life and has been by my side ever since. Shadow’s a timber wolf with a coat of pure black fur. Often he has been my eyes and ears in trying circumstances. Being still new to the way of the Druids I was often sent on missions, mainly sending messages and returning with answers. Being as there are lycanthropes in the area I was taught how to defend myself from them, but I tend to go out of my way to avoid them. I’ve been to several towns and a couple of cities, but I prefer the forest. Shadow seems to hear something, I’ll write more later; maybe I’ll write about this.
Character sheet: Beowulf [Illuskan (Human) Druid]
Cause of death: dropped below zero by a Cone of Cold spell.
We are now outside of the Dwarven fortress, though out exit was less than joyful.
We actually headed deeper into mountain first led by Tassar, which seems to be a trend that is always leading to disaster. Rosorc decided he would head off in the opposite direction. Theona and I stayed together to see where everyone else went. Deitricha and William followed Tassar, so I decided that we had better go with the larger group. I was concerned for Rosorc’s safety, however, so Theona and I lagged behind a good distance. I also figured this would help to protect us from traps that Tassar would be sure to trip.
Tassar wondered deeper into the fortress, throwing open any doors he found. Of course the first door he opened he found a Red Wizard of Thay! The Red Wizard had an assistant and four Gnoll bodyguards, who Tassar immediately attacked.
I remember very well what my mother told me about Red Wizards: Red Wizards are wizards of great power who have no scruples. They will do anything to get what they seek. Beware should you come upon one.
The Red Wizard was not our only trouble, however. Rosorc came clattering down the hall shouting about Drow, who were chasing him. I stepped around the corner and took a shot at one with my bow, and saw something even more terrifying: an Eye Tyrant. Rosorc Dragged me back, and we prepared to fight the Drow who would be surely coming around the corner. The Hallway then became a mass of black. I realized that one of the Drow had cast it so that we wouldn’t be able to ambush them. Rosorc and I then felt our way quickly down the hall and into the room that Tassar had charged into.
William had fallen in the confusion, and was missing. We cleared the room of gnolls and the Red wizard grabbed his assistant and winked out of existence, much like a teleport spell would do.
With the exit of the Red Wizard, we were able to turn our attention to the Drow trying to force their way through the door. Theona slammed the door in their faces and I held it while Rosorc pinned it with a few pitons.
The hallway grew quiet, so we opened the door again and looked for William, who was still missing. Rosorc peeked into the room that was across from us and saw the Eye Tyrant again. We decided that we should try and attack it en masse, so we gathered around the door with bows and crossbows and Deitricha swung the door open. Both the Eye Tyrant and our rag tag little group fired everything we had into each other. Rosorc then charged into the room to fight the creature. The Drow we had been fighting appeared throughout the room. One shot Rosorc, and he fell to its poison.
I continued trying to fight the Eye Tyrant at Range while Tassar engaged the Drow fighters and Theona traded shots with a Drow Sorcerer. I became the Eye Tyrant’s target, and received a sizzling broadside from it. I was staggered by the amount of punishment I received, but Solonor Thelandira’s hand guided my aim and I put my last arrow through the cursed things central eye, killing it.
Detricha healed me quite a bit and I helped Tassar to kill the rest of the Drow fighters. The Drow Sorcerer disappeared before we could kill him, however.
I closed the door and leaned against it. I could hardly move. Theona was not nearly as exhausted as me and threw herself into my arms. I am sure we would have ended up as a tangled mess of limbs had I not been using the door for support.
After minute the exhaustion wore off and we discussed what we should be doing. Theona begged that we return to the place we had arrived by portal and all the non-elves reluctantly agreed. We took a rubbing of the stone tablets that the Red Wizard had been studying and made our way back to the ornate doors in the hallway we had appeared in. Theona made sure the door had not been trapped than pushed them open reveling a huge room resembling a foyer. There were two slits in the ceiling, which Rosorc said would most likely be used to dump boiling oil on intruders. Tassar ran across the room and flung open another set of ornate doors, revealing open sky!
Theona and I breathed sighs of relief and we set of on the ancient Dwarven road. I ranged ahead so that I could better spot and provide warning of anything that we may come upon. My ability to move quietly and keep to shadows also pays off allowing me to get away unseen to warn others of coming trouble.
I managed to find trouble not long after we had set out. A band of Orcs, along with a couple of dire boars was heading up the path, heading towards the Dwarven hold. I returned to the rest of the party quickly and told everyone to hide. We hid behind boulders much like we had done in the Hells, but this time it did not work nearly as well. The Orcs spotted William and Rosorc immediately, and charged up the hill after them. I lost track of where everyone was during the battle because we all broke cover and fought for our lives. I think Rosorc and I each killed a half dozen Orcs, but we were both looking worse for wear after the fight. One of the dire boars knocked me off my feet, and I only managed to hold on because I was able to heal myself with my wand.
William did not make it through the battle unfortunately, he tried to help us by casting spells, but he attracted the attention of to many for him to handle, and was crushed to death by a boar.
We buried William and piled the Orc bodies in the road, serving as a warning to any other patrols. But a warning to what? We are in no shape to fight, and my biggest concern is finding a hiding place well off the road where we can rest undisturbed.