Time keeps going on even in the Shadow Tomb of Acererak

 1490

Year of the Star Walker's Return

Alturiak 1

 

      Inside the the Shadow Tomb our party of adventurer's take a long rest after their encounter with the room of many doors.  As they rest, back home the world of Faerun ushers in a new year, 1490, the Year of the Star Walker's Return.  Also at this time, at a monastery called Shan Phen, a little known monk named Brother Krux'Fiur was voted in as leader of the monastery.  This election was held in difficult contest between Brother Ayshad and Brother Erianae.  After many rounds of inconclusive voting, Brother Erianae along with several other well thought of monks threw their support to Krux in a surprise move to break the stalemate and foil Brother Ayshad's attempt to run the monastery.  Brother Ayshad's motives were long held in suspect by their old leader Bishop Sasoroth.  Sasoroth was a lovable old Genasi that took a particular liking to Krux and was loved by all except a few people like Ayshad and his followers.  Brother Erianae assumes the leadership until Krux can be brought back from his last known location, a back water place called Faerun on the prime material plane.  Erianae never made it to the next morning, he died that night after suffering a major heart attack.  Several monks used a speak with dead ritual, but could find no malcontent in his death.  Under the laws of the monastery, Brother Ayshad now ascends to the leadership position until Krux's return.  He has sent a party of monks to make sure Krux never returns.  His plans have almost come to complete fruition!  Some of the monks now suspect Ayshad in both the deaths of Erianae and Sasoroth but have little to gain and much to lose now if they were to speak up.  Sasoroth rules them with an iron fist.

     As Krux's ends his dream state and gathers up the more sleepy members of the party, their foreboding only increases as they go deeper into the tomb.  They run into a fight early in their explorations, a room covered in tapestries that seem to have a life of their own!  They avoid them as they fight a group of shadow undead.  To the great benefit of the party, Azten is able to heap extra amounts of radiant damage on these fell creatures doing much more damage than a regular attack would.  This makes Azten a big target especially now that Riddick is bent and weaken with age.  No where to be seen is Solomon, he was left behind being the ass that he is.  The group defeats the enemy and then continues to explore.  Coming out into a hallway there is nothing to be found except an animated door knob.  Apparently this knob was once a prince named Joephesus of a huge city called Greyhawk on a far away plane.  Jax's arcane knowledge is awoken at the memory of Greyhawk.  Although he has never been there, every mage worth his salt knows about the beginnings of magic back when it was ordered into sciences by the great pioneers in the field like Mordenkainen, Bigby, and Evard.  Joephesus promises them riches if they free him from the door he was cursed to open long ago by Acererak and return him home; Hannibal pries him off of the door and carries him with his bags.

    Passing through several trapped areas the party overcomes many challenges that Acererak has put in their way.  A room with no visible exit surrounded by necrotic water, a trapped hall that takes every one's best effort to piece together how to pass (Krux's nature checks were the difference there), and even an old prison room, where at the bottom was a treasure hoard from past adventurers that failed to conquer the tomb.

    The group seems to be getting closer to final areas of this horrible tomb, and they hope this happens soon.  Their supplies and will power are weakening just being in this awful place.  For now they continue on eager to meet Acererak and end him for good.

Exp. gained: 5890

Moil, the city that waits.

 1489
Year of the Warrior Princess 

Hammer 29 

   As our adventurer's run the gamut in the towers that over look ruined Moil, and they try and hurry to the portal that leads out of the city and to their next destination; following the adventuring party of the Raven Queen's followers.   They catch glimpses of the guardian of Moil, the Tortured Vestige from time to time as it hunts for all living beings that enter the city.

   They run into a dead end, but must fight the current occupant a huge undead called a Molian Barrow!  They decided to try and run past it thinking that it won't leave its tower to chase them.  Unluckily, Hannibal and Azten are not as lithe as Riddick and Brother Krux.  They end of defeating the Borrow and continue on.  On one of the dangerous bridges, they are beset upon by a large group of zombie rangers and their undead necrotic controllers.  A fierce battle ensues with Solomon Kong tumbling over the bridge and into the damaging mists below, dragging a zombie wizard with him.  Luckily the rangers have little resistance to the parties attacks and they are taken out very quickly.

   At last our party arrives at what must be the portal out of Moil.  Jax detects that the portal is shielded from use and that this shield is less that a week old.  He believes that he can break this shield with his arcane energy but it will take time.  Aiding him is Riddick using his knowledge of locks and traps to try and break it down using physical force.  While this is going on, a large creature enters the ruined tower trapping the party in the room.  It is none other that the Tortured Vestige!  Knowing that the creature is far more powerful than the party, Hannibal attacks it trying to buy time for Jax and Riddick.  Aiding him greatly are Azten and Solomon Kong.  The creature is hittable, and is taking some damage, but it is dealing out far more to the party.  At long last Jax breaks the seal on the portal and the party jumps through!  With baited breath they wait, hoping the creature does not follow them through the portal.  They wait and look about the room.  It is covered in arcane designs similar to the Garden of Graves in the Fae-wild.  Jax also tells them they are no longer on the plane of the Shadowfell, but most likely in a pocket dimension just off of the Shadowfell.  The room is circular shaped and has 10 odd doors going all around it.  In the middle is a large sculpture of a head looking upward, with its mouth open.  After an arcane and history check the group knows this is the symbol for Acererak, the legendary Demi-Litch, that has taken an interest to some of the members of the party for past deeds done against it by their ancestors.  Also hanging about the room are several corpses some of them wearing the symbols of the Raven Queen.   After testing some of the doors they find some teleport the person above the mouth of the statue and do damage, and some alter the person in a negative way.  Azten was struck unconscious and now suffers spats of sleep that occur at random times.  Solomon was cursed several times, his head turning into a donkeys, and his size shrinking to a half-ling's height.  Riddick was also unlucky, stepping through one of the doors aged him 150 years, to middle-age.  He now appears weakened and a bit slow, but that might wear off over time.  At long last they figure out the riddle of the room, but smashing the eyes of the statue which removes the magical trap and allows them to descend down into Acererak's dungeon!

Exp gained: 4267

What do you mean there are places worse than the underdark?

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 15 to Hammer 28

Our group of adventurers have spent the last couple of weeks doing various things in and around Waterdeep. With the absence of Ellanzo, Piergeiron the Paladinson has been recalled to take back the leadership of Waterdeep as the open lord of Waterdeep. Aiding Piergeiron with the logistics of town watch is Hannibal. Ellazno spoke highly of Hannibal's capabilities which Piergeiron has taken as a serious endorsement of his capabilities. There have been many sightings of odd portals that pop up at random locations in Waterdeep. Out of these portals sometimes come monsters from the Far Realm which wreak havoc before they can be slain by the watch. Solomon has experience combating these monsters from his home plane, where he tells anyone that will listen that there is no Far Realm, but that it is called Xoriat, the Realm of Madness. Jax has studied the magical residue from these portals and it matches up to the weird sigils that you uncovered in the Fae Wild at the Garden of Graves. You realize now that the curse unleashed those many years ago by the adventurers from Waterdeep has found its target once more amongst some of your friends and party members.
Tracking down a portal one night, the party is stopped by a large half-orc flanked by a few companions. The half-orc introduces himself as Gorelock, Agent of the Raven Queen. It seems that whatever power you disrupted in the Garden of Graves was attempting to take over part or all of the domain of death from the Raven Queen which is a big no-no. At first it was thought that your party was in league with this strange power, but after talking to you for a few minutes, Gorelock realizes you are not the enemies his group is looking for. He and Hannibal talk for a few minutes and decide to work together for both group's common benefit. Gorelock and his party will track down the source of these portals here in Waterdeep (this has been eluding your efforts for a couple of weeks now), while you take a portal that they tracked down that goes to the source of this weird magic that lies in the Shadowfell. Since you also have other business with the owner of this source of weird magic (Jax's vision from Helm), you decide that this is the best path to take for now. Gorelock mentions that the Raven Queen sent a party through this portal about a week ago, and that you should aid those followers or work together to defeat this mysterious foe.
You prepare for your trip by stocking up on rituals and doing some research on the Shadowfell. After saying your goodbyes to friends and family (as well as Piergeiron), you jump through the portal.
Nothing has prepared you for what you now see! You are in the darkest and most evil area of the Shadowfell, the city of Moil! You look around and appear to be in the top of a ruined tower. Time for conjecture is limited as you are quickly attacked by Molian Zombies and Wights! After a ferocious combat, which your newest companion Azten fought mightily, you realize that you are so far deep into the Shadowfell that healing is limited here. Jax also conjectures that if anyone were to die here that they could very will be permanently dead unless dealt with very quickly. While the group takes a short rest, Jax tells a fairly well known story about Moil (at least in the Wizard's College). Moil, also known as the city that waits: Moil had once been the capital of a civilization that worshipped Orcus; when the people began to turn to less-bloodthirsty powers, Orcus tore the city from the face of the world and cast them in a demiplane where they would sleep forever in a land with no sun. It is said that on that day, all children there lost the ability to speak, saying only one word, over and over again: Orcus. The city is inhabited solely with undead, and there is a guardian of untold might called "The Tortured Vestige".
After a while you travel on going between towers by narrow catwalks that look fatal if you were to fall off of them. You come to another tower that is mostly intact where you must push past a series of tests. Who built these you know not, but there is no other way around them. Breezing though the swirling blades and towers of iron are Brother Krux and Riddick. Slower with these tests is Azten. Hannibal found that he needed to go back for Azten during the first test to aid him with it. Solomon found that he was able to power past most of the challenges as well. About halfway through the obstacles, you are beset upon by banshees! They manage to blast Solomon and Hannibal off of the tower and down into a necrotic sludge cloud several times before the group manages to bypass them and escape out of the tower!
After a short rest on the stairs it is time to press forward once more.

Exp. Gained: 3160

The Justicar's Journal

Hammer 12: The drow bastards have been hot on our trail now for two days. We were able to escape the city of Menzoberranzan without any combat due in no small part to Landon's aid. It seems he was very well acquainted with paths and ways that most of the denizens down here rarely use. He has proven himself to us several times since I met up with the party outside of Helm's temple.
Hammer 14: We have escaped out of the drow contested areas of the Underdark and are now in lands controlled by no one people. These are almost as dangerous as the drow lands. There are fell creatures here that would chill the blood of the most stout dwarf any day. Leif was almost slain by a nest of cloakers we came across while hiding from some patrols. We are now making good speed to Skullport and the Waterdavian forces there. I do hope our splitting the party has paid off for the other group. That poor soul Riddick has been though much the last month.

Out of the Underdark!

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 10 to Hammer 13

Escaping with Riddick, the party stops for a few minutes for a short rest. They have been weaving in and out of hallways avoiding patrols. There is the odd fight once in a while, but they make short work of the Drow. Luckily, most of the armed guards and war priestesses are off in combat against the top-side forces. Ducking into a room to retrieve some of Riddick's possessions, Jax perceives that many of Riddick's vestments are enchanted with traces of conjuration and transmutation magic. The effect is while Riddick remains in the Underdark he is able to be sensed by Lolth's minions. The closer to Drow settlements he is the stronger the magic is. Not only are Riddick's possessions enchanted, but so is Riddick himself! To this the Justicar lays out a daring plan: They will split the party in two, with the Justicar leading a "dummy" force away from Riddick. To aid this, Landon will change clothes with Riddick. Since both are Drow and have a similar builds, he could pass for Riddick at a short distance. Going with the Justicar and Landon are Lucius (who has a very strong friendship wit Landon), and Lief, one of the groups two leaders/healers. This configuration gives both parties their best shots at getting out of the Underdark. The Justicar gives Hannibal an ancient map that leads to a portal not much more than a days long journey from here. This portal was enchanted by members of the Justicar's race long ago and is only know to a few. That you now are trusted by the Justicar to this degree makes you feel good indeed.
You bid each other farewell and the Justicar leads his group away. They are to travel by secret way to Skullport to meet up with Elladon's forces that are rumored to have mustered there after liberating it from the Drow. You head the opposite way down into the sewers. The sewers served you well getting into the temple, now you will try your luck with them leaving the city. Everyone jumps down into a large pipe that empties into the waste system just above the main sewer lines. In this area is a Drow patrol that was sent there to look for you! Neither group is surprised, and during the early part of the fight, Riddick fights as though he is killing Lolth herself! After killing several soldiers and a handmaiden of Lolth, Solomon pulls out a grate leading downward, and Riddick covers up the hole with some trickery, to buy some time.
You travel on for sometime, trying to lose the patrols that are certainly attacking you. Eventually you end up running into a patrol, and a combat ensues are you clear the area of them so you can continue onward. The flame that burned in Riddick's heart before has now gone cold. He is noticeably tired, but his hatred of the Drow compensates him greatly.
You are close to leaving the Drow areas, when you run into what must have been a large fight. There are many Elves and Knights of Corymr that have been slain along with many Drow. There are several Drow left, and they seem to have some prisoners in a deep pit below them. The prisoners look to be wounded and the Drow are enjoying themselves as they throw rocks down trying to injure their captives. As you burst onto the scene, the Drow pull back from the pit and ready their weapons. Some are armed with spears, the rest with short bows. The battle is not as swift as it should be as the Drow use the pit and the bridge it crosses to their advantage. Jax seems to run into problems as he becomes the target of the arches for several rounds. Solomon takes joy in pushing one of the bowmen into the pit, where the prisoners descend upon them. After the combat, you aid the men and surface elves. They tell you that the fight took place here as their team was a large reconnaissance force sent to gather intel and perhaps meet up with your group to aid you. They were stopped here by a drow regiment on its way to the main battle. You tell them your plan and invite them to join you on your escape from the Underdark. Among the survivors is a stout Dwarf who goes by the name of Azten Anlagg. Azten is a servant of Kelemvor, and was sent by the priests of that church to aid the armies against the drow. Azten is also an expert in the Underdark, rivaling even the knowledge of the Justicar.
After several hours, you come to a very isolated and creepy place, even for Underdark standards. The group moves cautiously to the back of the cave and come upon the inhabitants here, two Hookhorrors and a Beholder! They look to be playing with some drow corpses, when the Beholder espies you. He shouts: "Come join the fun! These Drow fools tried to take me on and lost, will your luck be better?" Hannibal expresses gave concern about the forces arrayed before his party. Solomon tells him to grow a pair as he leaps into combat! Krux also seems to be filled with a blood rage, and against all wisdom, he rushes past the hookhorrors and directly attacks the beholder! The rest of the party then mobilizes to support the front lines. The elven gods must have been gracing the party at this point as none of monsters could land a blow! Once they figured out how to combat the group it was too late! Thanks to Solomon and Krux, the monsters have been defeated.
Jax examines the portal and senses that it is safe to use. They travel through it and land close to Neverwinter! Out of the Underdark at last! Jax uses some of his contacts to get hold of a teleportation circle that takes you to the wizard's college in Waterdeep.
One thing you have noticed is that many able bodied men are missing, gone to fight the Drow with Ellanzo and the Army of the Sword Coast. Crime in around the large cities as well as the countryside has increased but order still prevails for now. Walton Barrue, Lord of the Mercchants Ward, is trying to make political hay over this to weaken Ellanzo politically.
Also of concern is that Hannibal's Rod of the Guardian went off while he was in the Underdark. The rod was given to you by the King of Cormyr as a gift when you departed his land several months ago. The rod has three parts. Any one part can be used to alert owners of the other two that something bad has befallen. Leif, Hannibal and Brolgar each carry one part. The part that went off was one possessed by Brolgar. He was traveling with Elladon's army. The message that came to Hannibal was: "Ambushed at Skullport, Drow army here, numbers are immense. We are trapped. We are trying to escape with Ellanzo while his army buys us some..."
After a few days, the elves and men of Cormyr leave for their homelands after thanking you for saving them. Azten sees that your numbers have been diminished by the group split in Menzoberranzan, and is willing to aid your efforts against the enemies of order until some of your members return. You welcome the aid.


Exp. Gained: 2755

Into Menzoberranzan

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 10

The Justicar leads you to the outskirts of Menzoberranzan where you need to decide where to go from here. Several opinions have been discussed such as climbing up the tall slopes outside the city to recon it or just walking right into the city dressed as merchants of some sort. Hannibal pointed out that they have no wagon and nothing to sell, so that idea was scrapped. At last it is decided to travel underneath the city by way of the sewers. Landon it turns out was sent down to the sewers many times as punishment, so he knows his way around a bit. Climbing up into a pipe filled with Drow sewage tests the will of the party, but everyone makes it. Some are feces drenched such as Lucius, other like Brother Krux manage to leap up and about so only small smudges can be seen on his royal githzerai robes.
Inside the pipes the party moves on for an hour or so and then come upon an isolated band of Duergar, or dark dwarves. They turned out to be slaves that were tasked with the maintenance of some of the sewer routes. Hostile at first, Lucius and Hannibal were able to come to terms, and even barter for some directions. The key was Lief, who bound and healed some of the wounded so they could escape and not slow down the Duergar as they fled. The leader of the band told Leif he was owed a blood debt by the Duergar clan.
Using the information from the dwarves, the party locates and breaks into the bowels of Lolth's temple. All is eerily quiet, it seems that most of the temple staff are either assigned to Drow war bands or preparing for the ritual that the group must save Riddick from being sacrificed. Sneaking up several levels they use an old artifact of the Justicars to walk around silently. They move about the temple for a good distance when the heroes encounter 4 Drow guards outside a room patrolling it along with a giant spider! A silent combat ensues with Hannibal giving hand signals to everyone during the fight. They win though the guards and open up the room finding what appears to be a wizened, and dead Riddick on the floor. Surrounding him are 4 Drow hand maidens of Lolth! Another silent battle erupts and the party spills the Drow blood freely on the floor. After the combat they examine Riddick to find that the Drow was actually Riddick's father, Malaggar! He is dead, but they shove him in a magical bag that is large enough to hold the body until they can get him to a healer.
The only direction left is up, so the group ascends some stairs and peek around a corner to see a long hallway. In this hallway are many slaves, heads dropped in servitude, as they stand next to the walls to do the bidding of the Drow clergy. Past the hallway is a balcony, where they can see Riddick suspended on some type of device! They form a plan: Jax is going to summon Phantom Steeds, and they will use the steeds to ride past the hallway, onto the balcony, free Riddick, and fly on to safety! Unfortunately, Jax mumbles the last few of the words of the ritual, and the Phantom Steeds are less then stellar. However, that does not stop the group, and they charge down the hallway! Taking extreme delight in the ride is Solomon, who sticks out his mightly blade as he rides, ending the lives of many miserable slaves to Lolth. Once out on the balcony, the party battles with two very tough priestesses above a large courtyard filled with frenzied Drow. During the fight the priestesses of Lolth call on her for aid, but she cannot deliver it, as she is in a dreadful combat with Corellon Larethian, the primary god of all good aligned elves. The heroes view the armies clashing though a portal the Lolth tried to use to come back and aid the priestesses. The deities were fighting above their respective armies, with some lesser Elven demi-gods fighting against large demons from Abyss. Surrounding them were Elves of all allegiances, and leading the elves of Myth Drannor was Elladon, his knights wearing the colors of silver and blue, his banner waving the breeze, and covered with the blood of many foes. The vision ended quickly and they were back to fighting the clerics of Lolth. Jax and Leif were called in to remove Riddick from the foul device he was attached to. After many rounds they were able to free Riddick, slay the clerics and make their way back through the temple in all of the mass confusion. It would only be a matter of time before order was restored and they were hunted. The party ran for several minutes, and then barred a door behind them. They were close to the sewers when Riddick was finally roused. He looked around and was astonished to find his friends there! He thinks he knows about where the party is inside the temple. He asks them to make a quick stop for his gear then then they can flee the temple area. The party will need to quickly decide if this delay will be worth it or not. As they quietly and quickly discuss it, horns are heard above them and below them.


Exp. Gained: 4028

Celere's Journal

I Celere, Initiate Handmaiden of Loth have been ordered by Emerate Qushae to record the important events of the next several weeks for posterity.

Hammer 1

We have captured the foul wretch Riddick of House Tab'bar, and slew his companions. They have realized there is no power in Faerun that can against the Drow!

Hammer 2

Riddick has been magically bound and his abilities suppressed by the Queen herself. He is under a deep sleep, but the Queen inspects him nightly, making us leave the area. What she does to him is unknown to any but Lolth.

Hammer 3

We have found out through messages that Riddick's allies have been brought back to life and now hunt us. Until we meet up with the full army, the queen has ordered us to make all haste to the Temple of Helm where we are to loot some of the more powerful artifacts.

Hammer 4

I am on hand to assist the senior handmaidens while they cast rituals on themselves to prepare for Riddick's seed. Rodchewer has angered Loth by having her way with Riddick's unconscious body, Loth deems that Riddick must give us his gift of free will or the magic will not be as potent. Plus the fertility ritual has not been completed, so Riddick has been used for naught. For her insolence, Rodchewer is chosen by Lolth to lead the temple raiding party and not participate further. I am chosen as her replacement!

Hammer 6

We are speeding as fast as we can now, but with the full army here the going is too slow for my liking. Word has spread that several of the pathetic top side armies have invaded the Underdark in a vain hope of joining battle with us before we make it to Menzoberranzan, where we will complete the dark ritual and unleash destruction upon Elven kind. The fertility ritual is now complete and we must use the magic within 48 hours or it will fail. We are told that the gestation of the boy we are to each carry will be greatly sped up and that the child will mature quickly until he reaches adulthood. I am blessed to be one of the 6 to get this privilege!

Hammer 7

Riddick is now awake and we have been feeding him rich food and drink to arouse him as best as we can. He seems to ignore our caressing hands and we cannot inflame his manhood. He is like a stone statue! The Queen tells us to tempt his inner fire with slave dancing and other erotic sights. He refuses this as well, even the when the Queen has visited him and offered him less pain he has refused. How insolent!

Hammer 8

The day has come and I am to be part of Lolth's history. From my womb will arise a great leader and slave to Lolth, one that will curse the top lands for many years! We enter the room behind the Queen and she parlays with Riddick one last time. He still has the wherewithal to shun her advances, so she sighs and presses him with magic. He is now ready for copulation! The Queen performs upon him a magical dance of love! Riddick is frozen on his back and made to look straight up at the Queen while she works him. Afterwards, powerful wizards are bought in to siphon off some of Riddick's gift which is then implanted in us to complete the ritual! After that the Queen cuts Riddick with her ancient blade and puts part of him in a magical container where it appears to still be living! The blade that cut Riddick is said to be enchanted with the blood of Corellon Larethian, and that any wound caused by the blade will never fully heal and the victim will never be completely free of the pain of the wound. It seems the Queen will carry the leader of the 7, he will be a great and powerful Drow indeed.

Hammer 9

My sisters and I are on the move ahead of the Drow forces. The Queen wants us to arrive at Menzoberranzan as soon as we may to prepare the ritual. Riddick needs to be placed and bled out so that we can power the ritual to its completion. We hear more rumors of the top siders gaining on our forces, so this might be a strategic move on Loth's part to move us out of harms way. Riddick's seed inside me has taken as I now can feel the creature move.

Outwit and Outpace the Drow

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 8

Over the past several days the group has been harrying the Drow host by driving on ahead of it and trying to slow it down as best as they can. The party chose this path after discussing their options. Some forces such as Ellanzo and the Army of the Sword Coast wanted them to recon paths and clear obstacles to make their army move faster so they could get down in time to rendezvous with the other armies allied against the Drow. The army of Corymr lead by their King Azoun V, and the army of Myth Drannor led by the elven emissary of the Eladrin gods, Elladon asked that the group slow down the Drow forces so that they could catch up before the Drow were to make it to the location of Lolth's great ritual that would see the death of Riddick take place. This is the path they have taken over the last few days. There are many minor scrapes but their first real fight takes place under water (at least at the start), against a water drake and two water archons guarding a lesser known path that an army like the Drow would never think to use. Going this way saves them several leagues but it is fraught with dangers such as the water creatures. They get past them and then travel on for a while unhindered. At last coming up to a large cavern that the Drow would need to traverse, they surprise a group of Driders sent to guard the exit to the cavern. The guards put up a strong fight and wound Solomon several times. The battle wisdom of Hannibal is ever present and the holy warrior duo of Krux and Lucius press the enemy at both sides. Causing confusion amongst the enemy ranks Lief and his retinue of spirit companions. Jax proves invaluable once again controlling the fight by immobilizing the enemy at the right times.
Overcoming the Driders, the group aided by the Justicar and Landon set fire to the large mushrooms in the cavern, causing the entire area to be unusable for several days as the fires burn out. The group presses on, now days ahead of the Drow forces as they try and locate their friend Riddick and get to him before the Demon Queen of Spiders can.


Exp: 3685

The Final Test of Helm

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 5

The last test awaits the party, and as they move up the corridor, they see two doors that lead to the next room. The doors are side by side, one bathed in red light the other in blue. There are 10 people, 4 Drow and 6 members of the party. The doors would not allow an uneven amount of people to move through them so the party had the split up evenly: 5 went through the red door and 5 went through the blue. Inside the one large room they saw it was evenly split with a wall of force down the middle. One side was bathed in blue, the other red. What they found odd was that even though Brother Krux was on the red side of the room he was bathed in blue light, the opposite was true for Lucius he was on the blue side and was bathed in red. At the start of the combat two portals appeared in random spots along the force field, these were the only way to move from one side of the room to the other. In the middle of the room on top of a pillar was a large aspect of the Cleric of Helm. On the red side was a large aspect of the Warlord of Helm. The blue side was home to a large aspect of the Paladin of Helm! They engaged the party and combat was on! The party soon learned that the glowing people would take an ever increasing amount of damage if they did not switch rooms by the end of the round. The glow seemed to jump to different people at randomly. The portals also seemed to move randomly at times as well. Sensing that this might be their last opportunity to escape and take their booty, the Drow led by Rod Chewer bided their time until they were mostly together and one of the aspects as defeated. Eventually the Paladin of Helm fell in combat and the Drow sprang their trap! Landon was ordered to move over to the red side unbalancing it so that the Cleric of Helm entered combat and gave the party more to deal with. Not giving up, the Drow were chased from the room by a mad-as-hell Leif and an equally mad Solomon Kong! The Drow through up many dark clouds and escaped through the door that lead to the labyrinth locking it behind them. The party quickly dealt with Landon. Lucius sensing the good in him made diplomatic overtures to see if he would join them. Hannibal was doubtful, but Landon agreed and Lucius vouched for him. After a fast rest, the party, now armed with the map of the labyrinth chase after the Drow. Helm dictated that both map and key guaranteed passage without harm though the maze, but it was possible to leave it with just one or the other. It seems the labyrinth is filled with traps both foul and deadly. There are many wrong turns and pitfalls. Using the map they avoid these, but without a key they have many problems at the locked doors. It seems the Drow as well have problems without the map, they can bypass the doors, but have less luck against the traps. At the bottom of a pit they find Reethtar, and embedded on a wall of spikes they find Lionsroar. At the final door they see tracks that must be Rod Chewer, she must have escaped! Going out of the passage, they travel for 30 minutes or so getting to the regular Underdark. Up ahead they see a familiar outline, it is the Justicar! He was caught and restrained Rod Chewer to boot! The party allows Landon a choice to kill Rod Chewer which he does without hesitation. Lucius and Jax restrain him from desecrating the corpse as he really hated his former master. They take back the relics of Helm valued at near 240,000 gold. They hope to trade the relics to the church of Helm for magical healing of some sort.
The Justicar reports that the armies of the Sword Coast have entered the Underdark near Waterdeep. Their plan is to march down to Skullport and liberate it from Drow control and then move down to put pressure onEmerate Qushae's forces. While this is happening, the armies of the Dales and Cormyr are invading the Underdark to the East while Elladon (head of the Eladrin kind in Faerun) invade from Myth Drannor. The hope is to stop the Drow from completing the ritual, however they can't stop the Drow army from reaching the ancient site of power that they need to use before the armies can get there. That is up to the party. You discuss options with the Justicar before taking a well deserved rest.

Exp. Gained: 3850

Helm's Answer

PROLOGUE:

The room before you fills with a white light and your minds are taken to another place. You feel that you are looking back in history to an epic location now only known by those versed in history of a faraway plane of existence known as Greyhawk.
A you follow a group of adventurer's garbed in strange but somewhat familiar dress. You seemed to have remembered seeing them before perhaps in a painting or in a book. They trudge through a swamp and end up at a small hill with several entrances. After observing them for several of their days, you now know them by the sound of their voice, appearance and name. They are:

Sonny Dawnbreaker, the Paladin of a strange god called Heironious
Feanor, an Elven Wizard/Ranger/Druid
Rax Frost, the Wizard
Oakbranch, a somewhat crazed Druid
Mr. Pink, a Thief of great renown

Wither they are there for riches or fame you feel the party has journeyed together for many adventures and are true friends. From their conversations you hear that this is the rumored resting place of an ancient archwizard turned Lich named Acererak. He is described as a creature of surpassing evil. The group enters the tomb and encounters many obstacles, over coming all of them. You yourselves see traps and puzzles that appear so devious that passing through them seems all but impossible. But this group must be lucky, or destined for something greater and they manage to get though the tomb and head into the final room. As they close into the final room, Leif almost has a stroke as the pain in his head intensifies and he screams and drops to his knees. Jax seems to recognize some of the runes on the wall as the somewhat crazed runes from the Garden of Graves in the Faewild. A wild encounter in the last room is overcome, and the jeweled skull of Acererak is discovered! The 5 friends surround the skull and ponder their next move. Rashly, Oakenbranch touches Acererak's skull and it animates! The skull rises in the air and before anyone can act it smotes Feanor dead! The remaining players crush the skull and end the undead life of Acererak! They pile the loot in bags of holding (along with Feanor's body) and leave the tomb.
Time flies by quickly now, hours become days, days become months, until finally many years have passed. The tomb is now inhabited by small rodents and other mean creatures. A rat scurrying by is zapped by some magical energy and a shade arises out of the long dead ashes of the skull. The spirit of Acererak arises, held together by nothing more than its will during the many long years, until it finally gathered enough strength to form an essence once more. It summons its long dormant magic and calls on its infernal allies for strength it was promised. First things first the evil demi-lich thinks, as it sacrifices some animals and breaks long hidden magical gems as part of the ritual. A fiery demon is summoned from the Abyss. Acererak commands it: "You are to slay every son of Rax Frost's bloodline on the eve of their 30th birthday, and enslave their souls. I will feast on his descendants and torment their souls for eternity". Acererak continues, "Mr. Pink is of elven decent and may be among the living. You will find him, and lay this curse upon him. The curse will change his luck to be forever bad, and will eventually make him penniless and destitute. Feanor died in my halls, so I will not curse him, however I will make something especially nasty for the paladin of Heironious. I now call upon my god Vecna to curse the paladin's family! They will love and care about serving their god more than other duties even to family. They will die friendless and scorned by their children. Finally, for the Druid Oakbranch, his line is to be cursed by insanity that will lead to self-destruction. I will send part of my essence into his bloodline to be tainted by me forever! As long as the taint exists I cannot be wholly destroyed! Muh Hah hah!
Your vision fades out, the Drow that are with you look at you all oddly. Rodchewer speaks, "What an odd vision, did everyone else see it too?" The party members look at each other and without a word continue onward.

The tests of Helm

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 3

Several hours have passed as the group has moved from test to test. Sometimes a challenge of skill, intellect or intuition, the party has worked well with the Drow so far. Rodchewer and Hannibal have butted heads a few times, but she has held her troops together the same has Hannibal. The party is lead to a small dining area and are given their late day meal. They are told to rest and that the test would conclude the next day. Both Hannibal and Leif and approached by separate Drow to try some "exotic" love making, only Leif decides to take a chance with Lionsrage, a strikingly tall and muscular Drow. Hannibal rebuffs the advances of Rodchewer, to her dismay.
The next day they are led to a room with a floor that consists of almost nothing but very small cracks that lead across to the exit. Below the cracks are pools of what appears to be lava, which at times seems to burst upward! They notice ropes hanging from the ceiling about 50 feet up and some odd looking material laying by the entrance to the room. The group seems to work long and hard on this puzzle and come up with s solution! They use the materials to ride the wave of hot air from the lava blasts up to the ropes. Once hanging on ropes, a magical bridge appears over the lava and on to the exit. They find a chest with some gold and gems on the other side. Also inside is a magical artifact! It seems to take an interest in Leif and attaches itself to Leif's cloak as a pin or broach.
The next test finds the party in a large glade with a Sphinx in the middle. He says, "Creatures, I am the mouth of Helm. Defeat me in a timely manner and I will answer one question for the each of you, or grant you a boon. I have the knowledge of Helm and a portion of his power. If your combat runs long then you will lose 1 boon per turn for both your group and the Drow. Once you are out of rounds I will take one life per round!" Combat starts! The Sphinx is able to confuse several people a round at will with clever riddles while he fights them as well. The Sphinx is also able to animate statues with his spirit, leaving all damage behind. The party figures this out quickly and starts to break statues before the Sphinx can get to them. Eventually the party starts to run out of turns and almost everyone loses their question/boon except for Jax and Rodchewer. Jax ponders his question for a few minutes and decides to ask Helm why his family line is cursed and what does it have to do with him now? There is a shimmer in the air as he asks his question and then it leaves, the answer to be brought to him later when Helm returns it.
The party is told there is one more test before the final test of Helm. They are to go into the void to travel to the final test, but to traverse the void 16 tests of skill must be completed, covering all the skills that the party has developed over the time they have been together. They get through more or less intact, although Leif does seem to take quite a bit of random damage from failed skill checks during this puzzle. The group moves out of the void and into the final room!

Exp. gained: 3980

The Judgement of Helm

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess
Hammer 2

The party is hot on the trail of the Drow army that has captured Riddick. They come upon the end of the trail which has appeared to end at an underground lake. Undaunted, Jax casts a water breathing spell and they continue on. When they come up on the other side of the lake, they are ambushed by some Drow archers and warriors. After several rounds of combat they overcome their attackers. Smiling as he dies, one of the Drow says there is a nice surpise ahead of you complements of the House Tab'bar. As they travel, they are in fairly continual contact with several key figures, Ellanzo, the Justicar, and Etzheeth. Both the Justicar and Etzeeth are heading toward the group to rendezvous and join forces. They are coming from different directions so the likely hood of meeting up with one or the other is fairly good. Both are experts in traveling the Underdark.
They next come to large cave with stream running through it. On the other side of the stream is an odd looking Drow waving a vary large sword over his head as if he is challenging the group. Melee ensues and as the group gets closer they see that this Drow looks to have been once a living member of Riddick's lost House! He is wearing what was fine armor, now tattered and torn. The weapon he is wielding is exquisitely fine, and has sigils of Riddick's house as well. Once the party is in the room, a trap is sprung! Out of the water and around rocks come many other undead, following the lead of their wight captain. All were members of House Tab'bar, some appear to be little more than youths, some are aged women and men. Loth was merciless in her slaughter of Riddick's house. Luckily Jax was well prepared to fight minions, and makes short work of them. Hannibal, Lucius, and Krux destroy the wight captain and take his sword as a weregild for Riddick.
A large waterfall needs to be traversed, in which a water sprite lives, as party members shimmy down the rope to the bottom, she plays with them to try and get them to fall on the rocks below. Luckily Jax has a feather-fall spell ready to catch anyone that falls.
They continue the chase... A few hours down the road they come to a fork where the drow forces split. A small force went off the right, the rest to the left. The party decides to purse the smaller force, and after a couple of hours they come to a long lost temple. The last communication with the Justicar had him a couple hours behind the party. He warns them that they are entering a part of the Underdark that was ravaged by the spell plague years ago. As the party approaches the temple, the Drow can be seen coming out with a large sack. The Drow spot the party and head back into the temple. The party gives chase and engages them in combat in the main hall of the Temple. According to Leif this was a temple dedicated to Helm, the Vigilant One, the Great Guard and the Watcher. He has long been seen as deity who impartially judges those that deserve so.
Part way though the fight the image of Helm appears! He speaks through a huge avatar: "Interlopers, Agents of Good and Evil! You have defiled my temple!" The image before the party has them quaking and some go prostrate. All fighting ceases... "You will now suffer my wrath", Helm speaks. He continues, "I curse you to pass the test of Helm! Pass or become my servants in the afterlife to serve me until the world is unmade". Leif and Jax, both learned in the ways of religion, know that the Test of Helm is a curse given to two fighting people or groups that upset Helm for some reason. Most fail to pass the test since co-operation and trust is required to pass the test. Helm bellows: "The first test is combat!" and with that he attacks both the party and Drow. Rising up from the floor are four pillars, after several rounds they find the trick is to figure out how each pillar is aligned and then have the correct person stand on each pillar. This weakens the Aspect, and eventually they defeat it.
The surviving Drow are composed of 3 females, Rod Chewer (the leader), Reethtar, and Lion's rage. The male is introduced as Landon. The females berate Landon and beat him constantly when they are angry, which is often. It seems your new mates are a rough bunch.

Exp. gained: 2850