Author: Follow Me, And Die!

SESSION 206 – June 6, 2018

We finished off the undying in the area and sought to secure it.

We learned that the stairs up are blocked and full of undying, so another plan, perhaps climbing or levitate is needed to get the outer door opened.

It turns out that the chief of the splinter group of the Ironhand clan killed Marchmain and put the cube from inside his skull into the console on the ship, and Marchmain now IS the ship.

Marchmain needs us, as repairs are incomplete. We have what we believe are plans and this location appears to have the gear we need. We think that with what has been done, and the help of the two engineers, that we can shave 3 days off our estimate to get the ship off the ground. (Marchmain wants to replace Xenotel and the sphere was his method to do that. So competing dwarves want to be the god in orbit and keep our the other dwarves that are reinforcements.)

We learned that there is some creature living in the water tank and it has taken over the minds of some dwarves sent for supplies, when the other dwarves were gathering supplies, they found him doing the same, and trying to get to the “Master.”

While on watch, Rallion saw a portal open up and Rallion was fighting in a terrible battle along side Thorfus and Axel, and one of our batteries with a single charge was drained and lit up at Thorfus’ side. Then the portal closed. It appeared to be a close fight, and this might be the difference needed to win.

We review the ship and determine what appears to be working, etc.

We think we have a plan.

Laris and Bavmorda make plans to attempt to train while the ship is repaired.

SESSION 205 – MAY 30, 2018

We open the door, ready for a fight, and did not check for traps. Many of us are severly wounded. Druetta is outright killed, and a few others are knocked unconscious. Nash and Lambertus set to work saving those knocked down. Rallion notices a monk of the Order of the Celestial Dragon and several dwarves in normal Silverthrone armor. Rallion calls out asking why they attacked, and the monk has them hold their fire, when he realizes we are not infected.

A dirty and dissheveled dwarf yells and motions for us to enter the ship, as “the master” wants to meet with us. Axelbot runs over, hits him, then grabs him and brings him into the area with the dwarves and monk, who close the doors. They sigh with relief when Rallion locks it.

We learn that the captured dwarf has resorted to canabalism when the food provided by Marchmain ran out. He eyes Drueta’s body hungrily. He is Nadreat Ironhand. (It was not made clear that he is Lord Ironhand, but Rallion assumes so, since Marchmain said Ironhand was with him.)

Rallion locks him in a room. They take the elevator down to the kitchen, mess hall, and recreation room. They put Druetta’s body in an empty food stasis unit. Nash asks Rallion to use the golden feather and Rallion touches her brown and says a few words over her.

Axelbot asks the two engineers they have, Angus & Coltish, to fix him. They do all they can with the material available. They are amazed that it speaks common, modern dwarven, and all the other languages dwarves speak. They question him about ancient technology. Axel spins a great yarn, and they soak it all in.

Nash and Lambertus cast all the healing they can, then we all rest with Axelbot on watch. Nash attempted to heal Estrill with his second round of healing, but she was infected and attempted to attack him. Rallion and Axel helped and got a cure disease potion in her, and she lay still, dead. (We can’t wait a day to do cure disease. If no time for Lambertus to re-learn the spell, we must use a potion.) We put her body in an empty food stasis chamber, to avoid rot.

The monkey autamaton worked to attract the attention of the infected that got on the catwalk after the explosion we set off.

After healing, but not giving Nash and Lambertus time to heal up, we go up, and with a prayer and silence on Axelbot, we take on the 5 infected still on the catwalk. Once slain, we pushed them over. The monkey made noise to attract the infected and gather them in one area. Before the silence wore off, we ran around to the stairs nearest the crowd. Kauri zapped 15+ with lightning, and all but one are now smouldering husks. Alys cast entangle, which rooted several more to the floor, in addition to a large cloud of spores below.

We hope another couple lightning bolts from Kauri will end the threat of infected in this area so we can ensure the stairs to the surface are secure, as there could be thousands of infected above. We also learned that 100 feet above is the first set of doors over the ship, controlled by the command center off the catwalk. 500 feet above is another set of doors. When it is opened, it will probably rain infected. Our plan is secure the ship area and the forge, so we can take advantage of the agreement to roam freely to return to the sub, etc.

SESSION 204 – May 23, 2018

We finish the battle with infected dwarves in modern power armor. During thefight one of them opened their suit and shot spores into the tram, infecting Drueta, Bavmorda, and Estrill. After the battle, Drueta drinks her potion of cure disease.

Nash tied them to the tram, and before it left, we retrieved 4 new style batteries, each with 2 charges. We gave one to Axelbot for the lightning axe he has, that had no charges.

We find the portal station and no cubes. The armory only had one pristine suit of ancient power armor, but no battery. Bavmorda is short enough to use it, and she uses one of the ancient batteries with one charge that we found. Before getting in the armor, Lambetus casts cure disease.

The other portal station was collapsed.

The forge had inert gorilla automatons, and materials of sheets of metal that only 4 of the many forges had. We encountered 4 infected dwarves. Kauri zapped them with lightning bolt dropping three, who did not move after that. The other was dropped by Bavmorda, and it tried to get up. Rallion zapped it with a charge from his lightning axe. It quit moving. So we have learned that cure disease and lightning will stop the infected.

We go to another tram terminal and see a monkey automaton. It looks at us and signals for us to go in. Rallion puts on the gold circlet and removes his ring, holding it so he can replace it quickly.

The monkey tells us using charcoal from Kauri, that Marchmain Sivis lives and had one other with him, the only two not infected.

The monkey makes a distraction at one door to lead the 40 infected away from us, so we can enter the central core without having to fight out way in.

We pass through a hall of heroes that includes Marchmain, Kalgun, and the names we have seen for the heads of all the research areas in Xen Khenl.

Next we enter the central core and see a 100 foot tall ship like the one some of us saw in the jungle, but this time, it is nose up.

We entered using silence 15′ radius to keep us all quiet and avoid attracting the infected. We go up a spiral staircase about 100 feet and see the gladd of the control room. It is unoccupied.

There is a sign in chalk in modern dwarf – “Survivors”.

It appears to point to the crew quarters across the bridge to the doors to the ship.

We prepare to meet Marchmain Sivis.

It was clear from the energy of the monkey automaton, that Marchmain needs our help and he asked after Thorfus and the Starchy Boyz.

Is this really Marchmain? What does he need from us, and can we trust him?

SESSION 203 – May 17, 2018

We hear a noise on the other side of the door that leads to the tram station, and as it walks away Rallion opens the door. We see two automatons that look like the bodies of dwarven warriors, but one arm appears to be a stick, and the cube is just floating in the air. They stop and when we don’t move, do in the door.

Before going to the galleria which is green, Rallion goes to try his key onthe door the automata used. As he steps next to it a voice gives the procedure to disarm, knock 3 times, and prostrate oneself if an audience is desited with Jax.

Rallion braves this meeting. Rallion is asked if he is part of a group, if he is from Curabel, and if he is with Silverthrone. Rallion answers truthfully to each, Yes, Yes, and No. He is then invited in and finds a very odd “conjoined twins” that is an old man who is hairless, and covered with ink from tattoos, and whose head have ioun stones circling them. Both seem to take turns talking to Rallion as if different parts of Jax’s personality are in each body. Is this a “natural” conjoined set of twins, or an experiment gone awry, or a curse? He asks if I have heard of him, and I have not. He was once master to Aldus Runnelbrook who did not stay with him long, so he is easily 600 years old.

Jax tells Rallion that Marchmain made a deal to stay out of each other’s way. Jax believes Marchmain is dead since he was so foolish to bring the disease, and our only opposition will be the infected. Most are still on the surface. He wizard locked the doors to the trams to prevent so many infected from bothering him. We cleared out the bioforge area we explored, speeding up his own efforts. He is not worried about Xen Khel or the armada, and is not interested in helping us. He requires tribute for transiting his realm, for returning for out sub, and for giving us directions to the space ship. If we succeed in saving the world, he expects us to tell the world about him. He plans to take his rightful place as ruler of the world, and will let us (was that only Rallion and Kauri?) live for meeting him and paying the tribute.

Jax wanted to meet all of us, but only Kauri was game to meet him when Rallion delivered the tribute.

While Rallion was talking with Jax, Kauri and Alys, with direction from Kalgun, put the voicebox in Axel.

Rallion returns and mentions Jax’s demand of tribute to let us pass freely, and he wants good stuff to research and sell. So we unload the information cubes and other magic items that are less useful to us, including the cursed gauntlets. Rallion asked if cursed items would suit him, and he said yes, as long as not all items were cursed. We also gave some valuable gems and gold to lighten out load.

The items we gave are: (18 all together)

Geosync info cube

Decsync info cube

Kalgun’s desync research info cube

Bioforging info cube

Marchmain’s crystal technology info cube

Engineering bay info cube from ship we found with replicator

Schematics for colossai info cube

Blank undying cube

Stun Stick

Inquisitor Mask

Gauntlets of fumbling (Magic Gauntlets +3/+6)

Ambergis – 8 flasks

Edan’s Flaming Leather hat (unique)

20 – 1,000 GP gems. (Rallion gave up his gems as he can’t use them if he is dead.)

10,000 gp

Shield Gauntlets – from Nash – burnt out

Scroll Explosive Runes

Manual of Iron Golems (We don’t have the time before the end of the world to use this, nor the money to do it.)

We heal completely using up remaining cure light spells. We rest enough for Kauri to learn double the spells as he decided to let the DVL expand his mind (re-write it). This afforded another round of cure light wounds, 5 each for Nash and Lambertus, which brought us all to full health, and allowed time to have each learn all their first level spells again. By morning, Nash was able to see shapes through his new eye. He is keeping it covered with an eye patch.

Laris maintained 1 knock in each crystal and 1 in memory. He used one so we could get on the tram, and another to get us off.

When we got to the other side of the tram, it was many miles, we don’t know just how fast we travelled, but the blurring of the tunnel was gut-wrenching. There were also thuds as the smears of infected were knocked down. It was mostly wriggling body parts or wriggling torsos.

At the other end of the tram, we found a station similar to the one we left, but rotated 180 degrees. The doors to N, E, and W were barricaded, and the one to the north has four dwarves in damaged new style power armor. They ignored us until the door to the tram opened. They approached and we fought. As we only opened one door it limited our abilities to attack eachother. Lambertus cast prayer, and Nash cast bless. We knocked one down, who had about 60 HP. Laris prepared to cast his last knock on the other side of the tram so we could flank the infected. We have about 16 minutes until the tram leaves.

SESSION 202 – May 9, 2018

We hear a loud noise to the NW of us and hear a female dwarf voice advise to stay clear of the tracks.

Rallion uses the mask and Lonely isle has a concentration of infected monks, dwarves, and other humans milling about around the fort. Midmark has regular activity. Xen Khel appears to be abandoned.

We find the chief biologist’s office and the gold key. There is a secret torture room and we rescue an ancient elf, Peronell, who agrees to help us. We give her clothes and weapons. She has never heard of the Matrons. She was a prisoner before the rebellion against the dwarves.

We go downstairs and retrieve the magic items that were on Lysander and the eye orbit bones.

As we go back to the lift, Nash stays behind. He activates his force field and it goes down and he takes a lot of damage when he smaches the tube with the eye. The eye jumps on his face and replaces one of his eyes. He can’t see out of the new eye.

We go upstairs and find the trams and a sign in common claiming to be the domain of Jax, the Archmagi.

SESSION 201 – May 1, 2018

Lambertus removes the curse so Rallion can remove the gauntlets, allowing him to use a weapon. Rallion puts them in his pack, just in case they are needed for the strength.

We investigate long-term storage and there is a time-field guarding each drawer. We get details and view the items taken off Lysander. Some look fancier than others. A gold key is needed to gain access. It is decided to finish searching the entire place, and then to go up.

We shut the door to block the room with a single automaton stomping an infected. We take out the automaton constantly shooting the other infected. Lambertus cures disease on the infected so we don’t have to worry about it. We find an observation room and more rooms, but alas, no gold key.

We search the other sub, and it has two dead occupants, and no keys or other useful items. Its hull was breached and floods the lower portion of the access shaft.

Having explored all we can, we take the elevator up, and the alarm is sounding. There are three doors. The first two we cannot open, the one we can open has two automatons who manage to shoot us up until we slowly take down each one.

Now to find a way past the other doors. We know that one wall is a one-way mirror from which we may be observed.