Burne's obsession

After months or years of wandering from one village to another and through trackless forests,
Kirioto and Ed were ready to try their luck again in the dungeons below the ruined moathouse.

They returned to Hommelet and offered their services to Burne who was, indeed still seeking the legendary pools that were the key to understanding elven magic.

Burne had a new assistant, Vegan, who eager to prove himself worthy, gladly joined the quest.

They recruited Phoenix, a brash warrior lass, ready to test herself.

The party was completed by Dane, a priest of Raud who was looking for Gerrilyn, a fellow disciple who disappeared from the mother church some time ago and last seen by the people of Hommelet  about to venture out on her own expedition to the moathouse.

The guards at the moathouse (a.k.a. Burne's Badgers) helpfully moved the pile of rocks and debris that held down the dungeon trapdoor, whistling a syncopated version of a well-known funeral dirge. The party lit their torches and ventured down a flight of well-constructed wooden stairs, narrowly missing a glob of green slime that fell from the ceiling and began dissolving the wooden steps. Stepping over the slime, the party reached the bottom of the stairs and began to look around. Ed pointed out the hallway where their companion Vlad had met his death by zombies. Kirioto noted some newly-constructed doors.  Locked.

Rebuffed by the threat of zombies and the locked doors, the party found a third option, a series of square rooms connected by old, unlocked doors.  Listening outside one of them, Ed heard noises-- footsteps, the grinding of stone on stone.  By the time they opened the door, there was no sound, not sound of what had made it.  There was, however, a small cell, and within it a prisoner. Ed picked the lock and Dane addressed the prisoner. He was dressed in Burne's livery and seemed in decent health, though a bit smelly, and very confused.  He offered them some food-- there was indeed a slection of bread, fruit, and wine in the cell. Dane declined and pressed him for his story. The man, who remembered his name was Sief, explained that he was one of Burne's Badgers and that, he had ventured into the dungeon alone. Because he was hungry. And met some talking bears. Convinced that he was harmless, the party escorted him up the stairs. "Watch your step!"

The other Badgers were happy and surprised to see him.  "We thought you deserted!"
"Dessert? The Bears will bring us some pudding!"

The party went back into the dungeon. Emboldend by the successful rescue, the party broke down the first of the pair of new doors and found a cache of weapons and food, including dried fruit like that which Sief had been eating. Ed, feeling paranoid, convinced the rest of the party that they needed to deal with the zombies or risk being surprised later.

Phoenix led the way down the zombie hallway. As she passed the first of several large pillars, two  zombies lumbered after her.  Ed shouted an alarm and Phoenix whirled to defend herself.  The battle was on.

A row of five cell doors opened and more zombies started to emerge.  Phoenix leapt into action, holding one of the doors closed and one pair of zombies trapped inside. Dane tried to turn the zombies, but faltered, and, still gripping his holy symbol in one hand, also readied is war hammer. Kirioto drew his sword and slashed one of the zombies to pieces.  Ed stepped back and notched an arrow.  Vegan mumbled what sounded like magic words that didn't seem to have any noticeable effect.

As the crowd of zombies approached, Dane charged to meet them. The rest of his party hung back. Phoenix held the door, and Kirioto assisted her, fending off the remaining zombie that had attacked from behind the pillar.  Ed shot an arrow that went wild. Vegan cast another spell.  Dane bashed one of the zombies in the face before being surrounded and killed by the others.  Ed gave the order to retreat. All responded.  Phoenix hesitated, but at least released the door and ran her fastest.

The party ran back to the storage room and up the stairs.  They heard the zombies tearing up Dane.  On the other side of the trapdoor, the Badgers were a little slow in answering the call to open the trapdoor. "Back again? Again? Already?"

Not wanting to say anything that might discourage the guards from opening the trapdoor, the party didn't say anything about the zombies, who by, the sound of it, were slowly drawing closer.  "Yeah," Kirioto explained, "we accidentally started a fire." This was also true.  When two zombies appeared at the bottom of the stairs, Ed through his lantern at them, followed by a flask of oil.  Both zombies burst into flames. "Yeah," Vegan added, "And I had to pee.  It smells really bad." This was also true.

While the lackadaisical Badgers, rolled away the stones, the party watched in horror as two burning zombies began climbing the stairs.  The first was completely consumed by flames, but the second kept climbing higher-- until it fell into the hole created by the green slime! Clouds of black smoke filled the air as the fire burned up the zombie, the slime, and-- by the time the trapdoor was opened, the flight of wooden stairs.  The Badgers pulled the party to safety and then slammed the door shut.

The Moathouse Grind

When Vulpio’s elven contacts learned that Burne, a human magician, was sending adventurers to explore below the moathouse, they summoned him and his friends Gerrilynn and Wolfgang with their own offer: don’t allow a long-buried evil return to the world.  Without being specific, Arethil, the elven priestess, told the party that she thought she thought there were darker powers involved, plotting and gathering strength deep below the earth.  The elves had a secret entrance to the dungeons beneath the moathouse.  They offered the party a safe base and asked them to explore.  If they could find the source of the power Burne was seeking, the elves would help them address it.  But if the enemy was who they thought it was, the elves didn’t want to alert their ancient foe to their presence; a gang of human explorers were unlikely to raise the same level of alarm. Speaking of humans, the elves warned Wolfgang & co. to avoid contact with Burne’s guards in the moathouse above, or for that matter any other humans.  If they could not be evaded, any humans should be dealt with diplomatically and brought to Arethil.  Gerrilynn thought this sounded ominous, but Arethil assured her, “If I wanted to kill them, I would leave that to you.”

The party came across a number of strange sights. A natural pool inspired curiosity, but bones on the bank warned them away.  The crypt, though quiet, seemed to offer nothing but dread and danger. They explored other tunnels.

Opening a door onto a blind wall seemed to trigger some type of alarm.  They encountered two groups of beast-men who attacked on sight.  These were fierce warriors, but between Gerrilynn’s divine powers, Wolfgang’s animal companions and Vulpio’s war hammer, the monsters were destroyed.  The party took a prisoner-- a hairy, shambling creature with claws and fangs. Gerilynn wanted to turn him over to the elves, while Wolfgang wanted to lead him to the wilderness outside and let him “run free.” Wolfgang won the argument, but Gerilynn won the dispute; on their way to the exit, the elves met them, congratulated them on their success—and took custody of the prisoner, throwing s net over his head and arms.  Wolfgang took this as proof that the elves would do the bugbear harm and that they should have done more to get him out.  But he turned over the prisoner.

The elves were grateful to have a prisoner, but most of all hoped to find the source of Burne’s new power.  So the party continued to explore.  Gerrilynn had made a comprehensive map and found they were confronted with a number of imperfect options.  There was the pool of dark water, in which something was lurking.  There was the crypt, which Wolfgang refused to explore.  And there was a portcullis barring the way down an otherwise safe looking passage.  The party reasoned that they were responsible for the portcullis being down—that the clanging sound they’d heard when opening a door the day before had been the sound of iron crashing down on the stone floor.  But they couldn’t figure out how to open it up again.  Wolfgang made friends with a group of rats who were eager to show him their home and the way down—if he could fit into the six-inch diameter hole in the wall.  They could not.

 

The Death of Vlad

Vlad was eager to pursue Burne’s quest with or without his associates.  Ed and Kirito, two wanderers who were passing through Hommlet on their way to nonwhere in particular were persuaded to join him.  Chrono the druid, whom he’dknown since Gold Hill agreed to join the party.

Burne escorted the group to the moathouse himself and introduced them to his guards.  These guards, in the interest of full transparency, admitted to the adventurers that while they considered themselves braver and stronger than most men, they absolutely refused to explore the dungeon below them and were only willing to garrison the moathouse itself because Burne paid well.  It wasn’t death that they were afraid of.  Death, they laughed, was not the worst alternative.

Burne explained once more what he was looking for—pools of water.  Not natural cave pools, but artfully constructed.  With writing on the walls.  They would know them when they found them.

The guards dutifully moved aside the assorted debris they had piled on top of the trapdoor that led into the dungeon.  Vlad led the way and the adventurers started down the rough wooden stairs.  About halfway down, a glob of bright green slime fell from ceiling onto Vlad, gliding off his mantle and landing on his leather gauntlet and his sword.  Vlad flung away his sword and.  More slime fell from the ceiling, this time landing on the stairs. Chrono scraped at it with his staff.  To his chagrin, the slime burned away his staff.  The slime was corrosive to both leather and metal and other weapons were lost before Ed scorched it with his torch. The slime smoldered and sparked and then burst into flame, quickly burning to a black smudge.

At the bottom of the stairs was a large room with two locked closets.  Ed picked the locks and found storerooms filled with weapons and other supplies.  Vlad chose a replacement sword, and the urged his companions to explore further.  Charging down a pillared corridor, Vlad was surprised by a shuffling undead man that beat him over the head with its rotting limbs.  Vlad spun on his heel shouting his war cry and destroyed the zombie with two solid strokes of his sword.  As his companions rushed to his aid, more zombies poured out of the row of dungeon cells that lined the corridor.

The zombies seemed drawn to Vlad and Vlad gleefully strode into their midst, swinging his sword in mighty, reckless arcs, cleaving bones and flesh, dropping enemies in a pile around him and  hardly noticing the rain of blows that fell on his head and shoulders.  Kirito could see that Vlad was nearly overwhelmed and fought through the horde of zombies to assist his companion.  But Vlad, in a blind battle rage, did not distinguish friend from foe; Kirito barely dodged what could have been a lethal blow.  Ed and Chrono flanked the zombies but did not dare engage them in melee.  Only when Vlad fell and dropped his sword did Kirito find an opportunity to plunge into the thick of the battle.  He killed two of the zombies and called on Ed and Chrono to help pull Vlad to safety.  Chrono tried to heal Vlad, but it was too late.  Kirito held the zombies at bay while Ed and Chrono carried Vlad’s body toward the stairs.

Kirito suffered a serious wound and retreated.  The zombies pursued, but slowly and without coordination; they were further hampered by arrows from Ed’s bow.  Chrono reached the stairs and called for help from the guards.  Two of them, forgetting their oaths of cowardice, rushed down to help carry Vlad’s body.  Ed tossed his torch at the zombies and was the last one up.

All the guards helped pile stones and firewood and furniture on top of the trapdoors as the zombies came clomping off the stairs.  For hours the zombies pounded mindlessly on the other side of the trapdoor.

Vlad was buried in Hommlet, in his armor, and without his hard-won mantle.  It was gone.

Wolfbang, the frog protector

 During the winter, a new group of treasure hunters visited the moathouse, and finding the upper levels virtually entry, took their time searching the dungeon area, and found a hidden staircase leading to a still lower level. The survivors of that expedition shared news of their adventures back in Hommlet. New rumors of strange, bestial creatures circulated the village. Burne the wizard, and a few others with rare sensibilities, kenned a change in the environment that suggested the treasure hunters had unwittingly re-opened a source of magical energies or knowledge. Burner convinced the elders that it was time for Hommlet to establish an official claim to the moathouse and its contents. He proposed that a force of vermin-hunters, led by several of his own men-at-arms, and supported by Hommlet's militia clear out any remaining giant frogs or other similar odious creatures that laired in the ground level of the moathouse. This would allow a garrison force to secure the entrance until the village decided on a plan to exploit the magic resources below.

Jaroo, Hommlet's chief druid and a member of the council, was muted in his opposition to the plan to eradicate a species from its natural home. He provided sound reasons to delay the extermination plan, and in the meantime called on his fellows to send a young druid who could help him save thee frogs.

The druid college sent Wolfbang, a headstrong and bellicose initiate who arrived in Hommlet with his pet wolf and a donkey laden with spears. Jaroo explained his plan. The frogs days at moathouse were numbered, that was clear. But there was an expansive swamp south of Hommlet that would provide a better home. Wolfbang should hire some assistants and transfer as many frogs as possible from the moathouse to the swamp. 

Wolfbang talked to some of the treasure hunters who had previously visited the moathouse. Gerilynn and Phoebe accepted the job, making terms with Jaroo that involved payment of 10 gold pieces for each successfully re-located frog.

The group started by surveying the swamp, seeking a suitable new home for the frogs. The swamp seemed to extend for miles in the area south and east of Hommlet, becoming progressively swampier in the area near the moat house. They were surprised to find signs of human habitation, a criss-cross of narrow tracks through the trees and mud.


Next, the group approached the moathouse. Gerilynn, based on several previous experiences, explained to the others that frogs, if hungry, would attack anything living that made its presence known. The party came to within 30 yards of the muddy water surrounding the moathouse, and then began throwing stones and clods of dirt to attract the frogs' attention. 

Sure enough the frogs came. Wolfbang accosted the largest of the frogs and made it understand that he was not food. The second largest frog lashed at Phoebe with its long sticky tongue and began to draw it toward its mouth. Phoebe drew her sword and severed the tongue-- that frog retreated to the water. Several smaller specimens lingered on the edge of the water.

The remaining large frog made Wolfbang understand that it was still hungry and that if he was not food, then there should be food somewhere else close by. It looked meaningfully at Gerilynn.

And so Gerilynn started to run. The frog ran after her. Wolfbang, Phoebe, and the wolf followed the large frog while the smaller frogs followed them.

The merry chase led away from the moathouse and toward the swamp. Gerilynn sprinted toward one of the few trees suitable for climbing, and pulled herself into it. Wolfbang, Phoebe, and the wolf ran into the swamp. The smaller frogs began to gain on them in the thick mud, but the advantage was reversed once the party reached one of the tracks they'd located earlier. 

The large frog, finding it couldn't reach Gerilynn with its tongue, joined the smaller frogs in their pursuit of the main party. After waiting to be sure it was safe, Gerilynn climbed down, and returned to Hommlet on the path through the woods.

Running on the trail, Wolfbang and Phoebe discovered they could easily outrun the frogs, but varied their pace enough to lead their pursuers well into the swamp. Only when the shadows were lengthening toward the end of the day, did they run their hardest and complete their escape.