Game Session Recaps

[frenzied67]

Highlights of Episode Seventy Nine
Gurthos 8th CE 1031

This prison room was almost forty feet wide and ran unchanged southward into darkness. Two rows of cage cells that were ten by ten in size and had bars that ran floor to ceiling stretched into those southern shadows. Five foot wide walkways ran by each row of cells on the east, the middle, and the west. Two doors could be seen along the eastern wall, about thirty feet apart from each other and the landing below the stairs the party were (mostly) now on.

Several of the Halforc guards and crossbow men froze upon seeing the huge flaming form of the elemental manifest, taken aback by magic they instinctively knew was beyond them. However one showed steel in his spine by running up and laying a short sword stroke on the searing creature. This did some damage, but the guard was burned due his proximity; he decided to move away from the heat and set himself up for an opportunity attack from the elemental. The Halforc lit up like a campfire. The next to attack was Jolly, who ran down the steps and tried a Frostbite cantrip on the Weevil Priestess. Though limned in ryme, the woman took no damage. After the sorcerer darted back into cover, Blaylocke stepped out and fired his bow and hit a guard. Another crossbow halforc hesitated in taking an action, not liking the looks of the party and their menacing elemental.

Meanwhile another guard took the time to smother the flames on his burning comrade, saving that Halorc’s life. Another one shot the elemental, and though he hit, the bolt did not seem to effect the creature as it would have a regular person (resistance?). Riardon moved out from cover and hit the once burning Halforc with his Firebolt cantrip, almost killing the brute. Another bolt zipped by the Elemental from a shooter who ran up out of the darkened southern portions of the prison. Wading through the freed men, women, and children from the pits, Grynn was able to get himself off the slave pit platform and down the stairs, almost to the wide landing beside the prison.

A man in ornate robes appeared from the south and screamed at the Halforcs: “You fools, it is the priestess who controls the fire elemental, shoot her!” He then popped a Dispel Magic on Leiya, dismissing her Continual Flame, and Aid spells, but his aim had been to get rid of the elemental. He failed. A Halforc guard interposed himself between this priest and the party. The weevil priestess that the party had faced in the slave pits appeared out of the dark, moving with an uncanny speed and surrounded by a field of glowing demonic shapes (an evil version of Spiritual Guardians). Though in the middle row of the cells, she was unable to bring the sphere of her spell onto the heroes, but she did hit the fire elemental with a successful Banish spell; a spell that is very efficacious against extra planar creatures.

Enkili finally got to wade through the party’s 19 charges and get down the stairs, catching his first glimpse of the fray. More guards and snipers moved into the party’s light, coming up from the south. Leiya fired at a sniper with a Guiding Bolt, but shot a little wide; grimacing she backed away from the corner. One of the new arrivals hit her with a crossbow, doing a little damage to her. Skipping to the front ranks of the foes, Jolrael cast a Thunderwave on a sniper, a guard, and the Weevil Priestess. Electricity jumped off his body onto the two Halforcs he was next to as the spell took effect (a class feature). He killed the previously burned sniper and tossed the guard hard into the cell bars a few feet away. The priestess was tossed, and through a stroke of luck, lost her concentration on the Spiritual Guardians.

Without the menacing field around her, Enkili saw an opportunity to lay into the Weevil Priestess. He charged forward and cut her deeply with the Sainted Sword, but only hit once. Directing his crossbow on the priestess, Grynn put a bolt in her then put himself in front of Leiya, checking to see how much harm she had taken. Guards and snipers lit up in a sudden frenzy seeing their Weevil Priestess brought to harm. Enkili took a critical from a crossbow, then a pug nosed assassin popped out of thin air planting steel in his back (auto crit). That rogue disengaged and ran down the eastern path beside the cells. A guard failed to land a blow on the fighter, but another sniper did hit. To add insult to injury, the Weevil Priestess also landed a blow on Enkili with a mace before slipping away with unnatural speed, denying the fighter a reprisal.

Placing herself in harms way, Leiya closed on Enkili and two of the Halforcs harrassing him. She hit the guard nearest the fighter then improved his devastated health with a Healing Word cantrip. The Guard she struck crit hit Leiya in retaliation, while another guard assumed the foul priestess’ place and attacked Enkili, keeping his health low. When Blaylocke stepped out to take his next shot, he noticed the Weevil Priestess through the bars of several eastern cages. He fired a Raulothim’s Psychic Lance spell instead of using his crossbow. The witch went down. Another bolt shattered on the northern wall near Enkili’s noggin. The male priest bent down and cast some form of healing magic of the Weevil Priestess, seemingly undoing all of Blaylocke’s hard work.

Cursing at the tenacity of their foes, Riardon chose to try his bow on a sniper. His shot killed the Halforc, so the Elf ducked back into cover looking for something, anything, he had that would help turn the tide. Two more snipers fired at Enkili, one hitting and the other missing. Again Jolrael moved into combat range next to Leiya. He intended to cast Aganazaar’s Scorcher, but the evil Priest man counterspelled with the spell of the same name. Avoiding an opportunity attack, Leiya repositioned herself behind Enkili and dressed his wounds with her Healing Kit, staunching several wounds even as he continued to melee with their foes.

A guard swung a sword at Jolly, but the sorcerer practically danced away from the blow. Even though Leiya tried to protect him, another guard smacked Enkili with his weapon. Standing back up, the Weevil Priestess again surrounded herself with a Spiritual Guardians spell, however, too many Halforcs had interposed themselves between her and the party so she was unable to bring any party members under the spread of that fell magic. Riardon tried to Firebolt the Weevil Priestess, but failed to connect with the cantrip; he stepped back into safety to continue rifling his bags and pockets.

A sniper pulled his sword and struck Jolrael a daunting blow. Luck was with the sorcerer as the Aid spell on him absorbed most of the damage he would have otherwise taken. The evil priest manifested a Spiritual Weapon behind Jolly (which missed its attack) before casting an unholy version of Guiding Bolt at the sorcerer. Quick reflexes saved Jolrael from harm again, though the spell caster began to look harried. Enkili was hit by another crossbow bolt. At a key moment in the fight, Blaylocke planted a Confusion spell in the midst of the orcs in the central northern walkway, catching four Halforc guards and snipers and almost catching up the Weevil Priestess. Using his Preserve Life ability, Grynn brought a great healing on Enkili. Melana’s newest priest then produced a Spiritual Weapon of his own to harm and harass the few Halforc’s not bound in the Confusion spell.

The Assassin (who was in the eastern aisle) shot Grynn with a crossbow, then melted back into the shadows in the south. Rubbing some dirt into his wounds, Enkili struck down a sniper then mauled a guard; he eyed the Weevil Priestess trying to figure out how to end her once and for all; too many Halforc’s stood between him and her still. Trying his frosty cantrip once more, Jolrael’s Frostbite magic hurt the Priestess this time around. He then dodged an opportunity attack and moved out of melee. Grinning, Grynn whapped a sniper up side the cranium with his mace, a blow that ended that threat forever. He then had his Spiritual Weapon phase through the cages to attack another Halforc sniper in the mid aisle, who was also brought low. A spell struck (confused) guard spent the next several seconds contemplating the solidity of a single bar of a cage, while another Confusion bound sniper pulled a blade and offed an addled guard up along the north wall.

Pulling forth his Wand of the Warmage, Riardon realized he now had the right tool in hand. With its granted power he was able to weave a Firebolt around prison bars to hit the Weevil Priestess. Now in the center aisle, the assassin moved up behind the priestess and tried to put a bolt into Enkili but missed. The malevolent Spiritual Weapon the Evil Priest had made struck Grynn in the side, then the violent cleric hit Melana’s priest with a Sacred Flame; a double whammy that Grynn easily shrugged off. That villain backed away down the center aisle until concealed in the shadows.

Thinking it would be easy to get at the Weevil Priestess because all the Halforc’s were spell addled, Enkili attempted to push through a sniper after moving into the Spiritual Guardian’s damaging field. That sniper resisted, so Enkili had to spend his time chopping up him and his surviving addle witted friend. He was then able to move up and verbally threaten the priestess face to face. Using her crossbow, Leiya managed to graze the Weevil Priestess with a bolt. She then braved the evil spell and got behind Enkili, shrugging off the damage. With all the Halforcs down the Weevil Priestess chose discretion once again. She disengaged from Enkili, pushed passed the assassin, and disappeared south.

Miffed because the Weevil Priestess was getting away again, Enkili poured his disappointment on the assassin instead, severely wounding the man but failing to impose fear into the rogue. This set Jolrael up for using his Frostbite. He killed the assassin with the cantrip. Grynn set his Spiritual Weapon into moving south through the cages, seemingly following him as he ran south down the eastern aisle. Riardon came around the corner and found the battlefield greatly changed. He moved further into the prison until he could see the Evil Priest. His Firebolt fired through the wand easily hit the foul cleric 55' away. Blaylocke also moved out until he found the only enemy in sight. The Evil Priest was struck hard by another use of Raulothim’s Psychic Lance. Surprisingly the man lived through it and continued his retrograde action.

Noticing keys on the guard’s and sniper’s bodies, Leiya retrives a set from the nearest body, she then set about openeing the topmost western cage using soothing tones to reassure the prisoners as she worked. Showing his tenacity, Grynn chased into the dark southern portion of the prison. He discovered that the slaver’s priest and priestess had both fled down a set of stairs along the south eastern wall, just passed the last cage. There was no one he could see down the first flight of steps. Calling back his discovery, he managed to dissuade anyone else from wasting their time chasing the last two bad guys. Riardon began to loot the nearest corpses for both keys and coins. Leiya continued to open cells and cajole prisoners with sweet promises of freedom.
Jolrael began to open the northern most door along the east wall (finding a starage room), but he encouraged Enkili to see what the assassin had on him before that. The big man complied, knowing this slaver captain would have worthy loot….

*Here we leave our exhausted but victorious heroes until our next game. That will be on April 28th. We are all glad that the technical difficulties that has held us back for over two months are now in our rearview mirrors.

**Our shopping list: we now need 600 gold pieces worth of diamonds for our clerics, as well as a grapnel hook, and a crowbar.

***Here are the questions I want to pose the party:
Are these the last group of slaves in this facility or are there more pens further along?

We have more than doubled the number of dependents looking to us for rescue, we still have to discover a way out. Which way, to the Orc village or down the stairs the priest pair went? Or will we find another route behind the second door on the east wall?

If there are more slaves do we dare try to save them, or do we take what we have and retire? (I hate this question).

Reminder, we still have the Aspis to worry about. Are they quietly trying to open the ramp door from the sewer room, or are they collecting forces as they find another avenue to come at us?

Feel free to answer my questions or add to this list with your own questions, and as always please point out what I’ve missed or gotten wrong. You should also encourage me to embelish your characters parts in the narrative, we are all a lot more bad ass than I imply in this missive.