Session Thirty-Three (Graveyard of Empires Summary)
Session 33
23rd of Laureldon, evening underground.
As the band prepares to engage the kobolds to the north, a kobold voice is heard : “Show them your fangs boys”. Those we can see withdraw to the north passage, shortly a clamor can be heard from the direction they went.
Axus and Ashton decide to inspect southwest tunnel while the room is held by the Boyz and Mercer Guardsmen. Following the downward sloping tunnel, the two enter a roughhewn room 20′ feet across littered with bones and straw. Axus retrieves his axe on the way down. Ashton notes heavy breathing to their left. Axus advances, Ashton covers his movement with his bow. Two terrified kobolds lacking the will to fight are comforted by Axus, he introduced them to his battle axe. They find nothing of worth in what is obviously the Dire Weasel’s lair.
Thorfal suggests we explore the NE passage when he learns the southern exits are secured. Chuq stays with the Mercer Men to keep their morale up while the Starchie Boys explores to the north.
Looking NW at a three way intersection, two kobolds archers are seen on the far side of a four way intersection. Fadlspar foolishly goads the tough guys into charging the archers only to fall into a pit trap in the center of the intersection. Axus, Finkelmur, Starchie and Thorfal fall into the pit. The archers withdraw laughing and our friends are helped out of the pit. We decide to call it a day.
On the way back to the Mercer Men, we are ambushed by two more kobolds archers lurking in the NE passage off of the three way intersection. Thorfal is fatally stuck and mimes Chuq. Faldspar covers our movements by casting wall of fog. Several arrows/bolts shot wildly at the ambushers kills another kobold. We stumble back to the Mercer Men and rest to replenish our spell power.
Watches are set. Near the end of his watch, Axus’s hears a kobold challenge “Done playing, yet?” from the north. Irked, Axus lets loose several arrows making the kobold withdraw. He finds a dead woman in the intersection and sees another pair of archers covering the three way intersection from the northwest.
An hour and a half into the next watch, Mercer Men wake Axus reporting voices to the north. Axus kills another kobold as a man rushes pass him into the camp. This hostage says there are at least 30 more prisoners held in three separate pens in lower caverns. The rest of the watch is uneventful.
Upon waking, Ashton heals the injured then decides to rest further for more healing spells. During Ashton’s rest, Axus rescues another prisoner when he kills her kobold guard. He charges a pair of archers in the four way intersection and slays them. He orders a forward camp at the three way intersection. A single kobold is noticed during the preparations.
24 of Laureldon, morning
Back to full fighting trim, the boyz set out to explore the NE tunnel. Beyond the first three way intersection, we find a second three way intersection with northern and SE spurs. Taking the SE spur into a 20’ x 20’ chamber that features straighter, plumber walls and a level floor. A primitive table and a stool occupy the space. Chuq covers the NE exit as the room is searched. A questionable wall prompts a more thorough search which discovers a hidden trap door. After a quick check by Chuq, Ashton elects to explore the dark small tunnel. After several turns and slight uphill climbs, Ashton returns and reports nothing found.
Rallying together, we leave by the NE exit as the slope rises. Ashton notices a side passage 10′ above the one we are traversing. He climbs above to investigate finding a simple boulder trap manned by a lone kobold. They come to blows and Ashton falls to his club. Chuq and Axus scramble up to help and the brigand gets intimate with Axus’s BattleAxe. We disarm the boulder by removing the pole lever. Ashton needs care, we return to the Mercer Men.
Planning to return to the boulder trap, Chuq espies two goblin archers NW of the first three way intersection. As Axus and Thorfal advance on the archers, two kobold spear wielders spring out from the flanking corners. Thorfal dispatches a spear wielder and archer. Finkelmur slays another spear wielder. Thorfal takes the last archer’s head as it tries to flee.
We decided to collect all of the kobold corpses and create a demoralizing Hot Gate Wall south of the pit trap in the four way intersection. A couple of light crossbowmen and spearman Mercer Men are left guarding the wall. Returning to the boulder trap, all climb up to the higher passage. Walking west, this corridor connects to the four way intersection from the east. Continuing west beyond the intersection, we find the large water chamber we entered from.
Returning to the Kobold corpse wall, we assign some Mercer Men to cover the southernmost three way intersection while we explore northward from the corpse wall. First we encounter another three way intersection with a NW leg leading into a chamber and a NE leg sloping up. Choosing the NW leg, we hear wind coming from a very large high ceilinged chamber. A search of the main chamber and five side chambers leads us to conclude this was the kobold main living area that has been abandoned and stripped of everything worthwhile. A short hallway is found on the north western end with a well-made door leading to what appears to be a combat practice room. Specifically due to man sized dummies showing excessive damage in the groin area. There is another door exiting this room. We wonder what’s on the other side as we call it a night.
BTW – last gibe, honest. Except for Faldimur and Finkelspar!