Pausing in the opening of the chieftain’s cavern the group prepares to launch an all out assault on the camp denizens. At that moment the cleric – ostensible leader of the group – says ‘hey, we should go back and investigate the chamber of blackness not scouted earlier by the wizard’s eye’. The group does not object and reverses course. While the monk guards the rear the cleric unsheathes Siveredge and the brilliant light cuts through the darkness to reveal a cave ahead. As they advance the light reveals a scummy pond, natural columns, and a wall of humanoid skulls cemented together.
Pressing on, the group is not really surprised when a frog from the abyss appears in the pond. As the paladin prepares to engage, there is even less amazement when a second frog appears in the brackish water. Warily and wearily the paladin moves to engage the frogspawn.
It is then that a giant stone frog comes leaping out of the darkness and smashes the paladin to the floor. What follows is about 100 seconds of pure mayhem. Spells are deployed and shrugged off by the stone beast who leaps from one character to another, crushing them with its great stone bulk. It croaks and slows and damages everyone save the mage upon whom it is resting. Once it leaps off he engages some of the frogs threatening Elulyn and Thelonius.
The battle is pitched and fierce and it falls to Goldpiece to deal most of the damage with his staff of striking while the rest of the group members try to deal with the unholy frogs. Once the stone frog is shattered to bits it begins to reform – which freaks the group right the fuck out – so they decide tro put a stop to it by bagging large sections of the stone and strtashing it in their extra-dimensional chamber.
As they deal with the idol’s remains they begin to be assaulted by a rain of frogs and then by spells that appear to emanate from behind the wall of skulls. Somewhat irked at this point, the group blasts the wall of skulls down and engages the ancient priestess that resides beyond. Neither age nor sex wins any respite for equal rights mean equal death to this group. They show no preference or prejudice, being equally likel;y to slay all they come across.
They loot the priestess’ chamber and then find they are too depleted to engage the camp at large. They retreat to the darkest of the hillside thickets to rest and watch the camp. Upon their return the elves quit the place with their rescued comrades and thank the group profusely. Soon enough, the death and destruction of the chieftain, idol, priestess and attendant guards and abyssal frogs is common knowledge. This precipitates a wholesale evacuation of the camp. While the group rests and watches the bulk of the tribesmen leave the place and travel further into the hills.
The following morning the group descends upon the encampment and practices wholesale arson, burning everything they can ignite, including the palisade and a small group of die hard believers who die hard.
From the thickets, the group travels through the planes to return to the village near Malthen Manor. there they relay the message to Trom triumph, then depart for the Torm temple complex near Immersea. Items are identified and the group breaks up to accomplish several goals in a short time.
The wizards, cleric and Gal travel to Suzail to inform the spymaster of all they have uncovered in the foothills of the Thunderstones, while Goldpiece travels back to the monastery with Thelonius to do the same.
From here, the plan is to return to the manor. The outbuildings need to be investigated and there is still an underground passage to be explored…
Leave a reply