"Never say die!"

@Edwin Voskamp's AD&D Game: Freehold 2000-06-04

The party:

• Zooo, a Dwarven Fighter.
• Lothar, King of the Hill People, a Human Fighter.
• Angus, a Human Fighter.
• Banba, a Human Fighter.
• Claire, an Elven Cleric of Labelas Enoreth.
• Rynna, a Halfelven Mage.
• Thalen, a Halfelven Ranger-Cleric of Solonor Thalandira.

Getting the Good Stuff

We duck into the left tunnel and follow it. Zooo tells us it goes down. After 300 yards, it opens up into a larger cave, about 60' across, 12' high and a corridor leading northeast. It has several rough bedrolls, a pile of various things, an alcove on the left holds 4 skeletons. I put Sinann and Sanenn on guard, one down each of the two corridors and we set about searching the room. Claire searches bedrolls to the left, Angus and I check the alcove and the rest searches the rest of the room.

Banba finds a scratched map on the wall: six linked caves, the sixth leading to a large cave with crossed axes. Two exits off of it are marked with crossed axes as well. Rynna checks it and decides it matches what we've seen, the large cave corresponding to the cave under the church.

Lothar and Zooo between them dig up about a thousand gold and two thousand silver pieces. Claire finds eight gems: 2 purple, one pink, one agate, cut like an eye, a moonstoon, a quartz and something we don't recognize.

In the alcove are the remains of what seems like an adventuring party: four skeletons, three human, two male, one female and one dwarf. They're long dead, decades at least. They have a lot of equipment that is still good, indicative of dweomers of some sort: Dwarven-sized elven chain mail, plate mail, full plate, splint, four shields, a battle axe, two swords, a mace, a dozen wax-sealed potion bottles, jewelry: 3 rings, 3 earrings, a sealed metal quiver with screw top, four scroll tubes, a small ivory wand and one very well preserved bag.

We take a tunnel to the next cave: it is about 300' long. Along the way we run into fourteen more of the cave dwellers and two more of their leader types. Rynna Sleeps three, Zooo gets hit (4 wounds), by a stone battleaxe. Zooo hits one (9 wounds), Angus hits one of his attackers (7 wounds). Claire's arrow hits Zooo in the back (7 wounds). I kill one. Angus kills one, steps up then kills another one. I step behind Zooo and Heal him (1 wound). Angus trades blows with another one (takes 6 wounds, deals 7 wounds). Zooo takes another wound (4 wounds). I kill another attacker. Rynna casts an Irritate spell on two attackers. Angus steps back behind Zooo as Banba and Lothar work their way up from their rearguard position. Banba steps up to fill the hole and kills Angus' former attacker. I cast another Healing on Zooo (7 wounds). One of the one affected by Rynna's spell attacks and hits Zooo (3 wounds). Banba kills the other affected one, steps up further. I hit one of the leaders and Zooo kills his affected attacker. Angus kills the three sleeping one, now that our frontline has moved past them. Banba takes a bad hit (4 wounds), but kills her attacker as Zooo kills another one. Banba attacks one of the leader as I kill the other one. Banba fights the remaining leader, taking another wound (4 wounds), but my arrow claims him as Zooo kills the last of our attackers.

Claire springs in action and bandages Angus (1 wound), Banba (2 wounds) and Zooo (3 wounds). Claire calls upon her increased powers and casts a Cure Medium Wounds on Zooo (6 wounds). In the meantime, the rest stripped the bodies: 83 gold, 94 silver and 123 electrum and 2 good, obisidian swords. We decide we are in no condition to push this and decide to turn back. As we pass through the large cave under the church we notice definite movement. We move out of Cork's ruins and go to the camping ground.

Ready to retire for the night, Claire and I call upon our remaining powers and Heal everyone.

We decide we're loaded up on stuff and Rynna claims she can find out what dweomers the items carry, but that she needs pearls as a component in her spells to do so.

Trading Up

Before we go back to Xanth, we go through the non magical stuff and Banba takes a pair of silver hoop earrings. Zooo takes the other! Angus takes a plain ring, silver, Celtic knotwork. Banba takes one signet ring: a red raven on sable, facing sinister, with a small red ruby for an eye. Zooo takes the other one: it is of Dwarven origin.

We travel back to Castle Xanth, taking six days, because of our heavy loads.

We set up in the Prancing Goat, clean up, and buy 10 pearls for Rynna: we get a good deal, only 900 gold. She takes five days to cast her Identify spells. In the mean time, we sort out our haul: 1269 gold, 2118 silver and 123 electrum, 2 long swords, 2 obsidian long swords. Two amethysts, worth 100 and 80 gold, respectively, one carnelion, worth 50 gold, two eye agates, worth 10 gold each, one malechite, worth 10 gold, one moonstone, worth 50 gold and one smokey quartz, worth 50 gold.

We find out a bit more about the signet rings: one is a signet ring of a highly placed cleric of Morrigan, a human God of War, the other is a personal signet ring of a great Dwarven hero: Thorin Elffriend, a Dwarf from the far East who, on a quest to find his roots in the Dwarven Mountain Kingdoms in the West came upon the Eastern Elves. He befriended the Elves and lived with them for seventy years before he came further West.

Rynna comes out and tells us what the items are:

• Plate Mail +3
• Full Plate +3
• Splint Mail +1
• Shields +2 (2)
• Shields +1 (2)
• Long Sword +2
• Long Sword +1
• Mace +1
• Potion of Healing (5)
• Potion of Extra-Healing (4)
• Potion of Invulnerability
• Potion of Heroism
• Potion of Speed
• Ring of Free Action
• Ring of Invisibility
• Arrow +1 (23)
• Scroll of Protection from Gas
• Scroll of Protection from Cold
• Scroll with three Mage's Spells:
  1. Magic Missile
  2. Sleep
  3. Dimension Door
• Wand of Frost (84 charges)
• Bag of Holding
• Map of the Cave Complex

We are stunned by the haul and decide to see whom of the fighters fits what first: The full plate fits Banba well, the plate mail fits Angus and the splint can be made to fit Lothar. Zooo takes the battle axe, selling his other magical axe and his backup axe. The two best shields are best suited to Zooo and Banba, Angus and Lothar take the other two. I take the best sword, Lothar the other. We'll sell the mace, as no one can use it. We give each figher a Potion of Extra Healing and a Potion of Healing, and get the spare to Rynna. We dice for the other potions: Zooo takes a Potion of Invulnerability, Lothar a Potion of Heroism, and Claire a Potion of Speed.

Rynna takes the Ring of Protection, the Mage's scroll, the Wand and the map. Claire takes the two Scrolls of Protection and I take the Bag of Holding.

Zooo decides that a Dwarven-sized suit of Elven Chain Mail, extremely rare as it is, is not up to his current armor and we decide to sell it. Claire does her singing thing and drums up a contact willing to take it off our hands. They offer 12 diamonds, for us to pick out of 15. We talk to a jeweler and pay him 100 gold to accompany us and give us his opinion. He decides they are all of good quality, about 5000 gold each. We try and haggle, playing up the dwarven hero story, but they walk out. We take the deal, if, since they obviously have good contacts with Dwarfs, they get us a suit of Dwarven plate mail for Zooo. They offer to provide it for 2 of their diamonds. We talk it over: the suit of Elven Chain for 10 diamonds and a suit of Dwarven plate mail for Zooo: we take it. They'll tell us it will be about a month before it is ready. We sell Zooo's old magical axe and the magical mace, bringing in another 3000 gold.

We arrange with the barkeep of the Prancing Pony to rent a wing of the Inn, and private guards for our belongings, paying up front.

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