The parade of portcullises…portculli…pains in the ass makes the group a little crazy. KD transforms into an umber hulk and starts burrowing through the walls, gouging out chunks of stone as they tunnel westward. Eventually they breach a wall that leads to a series of interlocking rooms, filled with some sort of vision and noise-suppressing fog that greatly hinders the typical party approaches to these situations.
Undaunted, they venture into the limited visibility. They encounter several wand-wielding kobolds that blast them with magic missiles, lightning bolts and fireballs. They also are flummoxed by magic that periodically causes Digin’s scary axe to vanish from his hand and reappear elsewhere in the mist. Oh…and traps. Lots and lots of traps. Most are detected, which has the effect of funneling the party back into wand range.
This goes on for a while and the party is increasingly frustrated by the hit and run tactics of the squirrely kobolds. They slay a few and press on, eventually coming face to face with a dragon! It promptly breathes fire upon them, but they quickly realize this is a trap, fashioned to look like a dragon. Incensed and incinerated, the party moves forward.
They leave the mist behind and enter a huge cavern, dimly lit by pools of reddish glow. Natural columns interrupt vision and there are ledges of various widths running around the perimeter, stretching into the distance. Dominating their attention is the huge dragon perched atop a massive mound of treasure, regarding them carefully. The party retreats hastily – chucks all manner of protection and magic on Digin and has him fly with his magic wings, as quickly as possible, to engage the dragon. As they advance, Digin departs in a flash and flies straight through the jet of hellfire the dragon spews at him. He lands on the bewildered dragon’s snout and delivers a mighty blow with Axe. Thanks to magical enhancements, he strikes again while the rest of the group decides how to proceed…
As they survey their options, an ambushing kobold unleashes an electrical strike into the group. Oh, right…the kobolds. KD and Sniffles lob some fireballs, while Fingers and Bayga descend to the floor and start encircling the dragon.
Digin and dragon exchange blows, while Zaal peppers the beast with magic missiles. Bayga blasts it from cover with the Chaositec ray, but it seems less affected than expected. Soon thereafter the beast is dead…and transforms into a kobold. A polymorphed kobold? A were-ko-draco-bold? What is happening?
“You fools” bellows the real dragon, coming into view. Augh! Red alert! During the next few seconds, the group discovers that this dragon is another kobold – though this one died almost immediately…probably an illusion of a dragon? The group also comes under magical attack, as evidenced by Digin spontaneously transforming into a fish.
The party rallies to his aid. Bayga and Fingers fall victim to some sort of confusion effect and spend time trying to kill each other before wandering away. Sniffles, Zaal and KD move to engage the assailant, which turns out to be a staff-wielding, cloaked kobold. It blasts KD with a disintegration spell, and Zaal beheads it with a single stroke…and the kobold transforms into the form of an ancient red-dragon. The resulting cascade of coins buries KD, causing the others to believe they were disintegrated for a moment or three.
Digin’s corpse is looted and buried under a pile of copper coins they collected during the five-day treasure sorting process. Some items are identified on site and Bayga eats a portion of the dragon’s brain in an attempt to glean information about the unique chaositec enhancement it displays. Deploying of a small army of reanimated kobolds equipped with magical backpacks, the group does an admirable job of plundering such a vast hoard. Though, given more time there could be additional riches to extract…but that sounds like a future problem, and they lead the treasure train out of the mountain.
From mountains to the plains, trying to remain unobtrusive means a lot of traveling by night. Luckily, the dead need no light. Once they get within range of Trolone, Bayga is sent ahead to secure lodgings and the group ferries in the loot via magical means. During the exchange, Bayga is reunited with an old acquaintance who is looking for a change of locale and maybe a bit of murderhoboing. Introductions all around and Kael’s first encounter with the group is watching them split a veritable mountain of coins and gems and magic items. He learns much about party dynamics and is all-in.
A boat is chartered and crew silence is bought – at least until they get back to Trolone – and once the docks of Ptolus heave into view the party undertakes various magical means to fly across the city and back to the manor house. Repairs are nearly complete, and the scars of the firebombed neighborhood are largely healed. The staff is alerted to your arrival and the party returns to the comforts of the upper-class life.