Earlier logs are here: one, two, three.
Summary: still in the dungeon, no one dies, 1 and part of another person join the adventurers, loot acquired and laughter made manifest. Overall, I count this session as a win.
First, though, some player-created art - after all, the character sheets do have a place to add a drawing, sigil, or coat of arms.
Truggledave or just plain Dave, drawn by his player.
Roro the Rash, drawn by her player
Not pictured are
Varda, Elf 1
Allistar, Thief 1
Brother Frank, Cleric of Avrae 1
Dack, Boar-Thief 1
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We began the session in the entrance chamber, with Dack the boar eating a fallen zombie (because that IS what pigs do - eat). As he munched, the party decided to begin moving south, from whence the zombies came. Inspecting the first set of alcoves, they discovered that the back walls were stone slabs, which, after some effort, they managed to drop with a crash!
Sadly, this noise triggered the first of MANY hazard die checks that did not bring anything to investigate.
Entering the chamber, they found a pair of stone sarcophagi. Upon investigation, they were revealed to have some form of effigies on the lids, but too faded and worn to determine exactly what might be entombed within. It was also noted that both sarcophagi had a pair of round holes on each side - no doubt for poles or spearshafts to more easily raise and lower the lid.
With no such poles, the party improvised a plan involving rope, a boar, brute strength, and ignorance. The end state was the first lid hit the floor with a crash, and everyone was surprised to see a human in full dungeon kit looking up at them, coughing a bit from the dust and blinking his eyes in the party's light.
A brief interrogation revealed that his name was Allistar the Thief and he had no idea how he ended up in the sarcophagus; when Varda realized it was her ex-husband in the sarcophagus, he claimed amnesia there, as well.
The lid crashing down should have brought trouble, but no encounter was rolled, just spoor of a future encounter, and with that, a buzzing sound was heard in the near distance. This sound caused Dave to fire a flaming arrow down the hallway, which eventually landed maybe 200 feet further, and the buzzing ceased.
Then with Varda to grudgingly vouch for him, Allistar joined the party in the looting of sarcophagi.
As they approached the second sarcophagus, the room got noticeably colder. Removing the second lid yielded a dead head, in that it was grey and dead, but had a glorious topknot of hair. More importantly, it was gagged and a blue-white light beamed from its eyes, like a modern day flashlight. Lifting it up and removing its gag, more of the same light came out its open mouth as it said, "thaaaannnnk yoouuuu."
Conversation with the talking head revealed its name to be Daffyd Byrns, who not only spoke in song lyrics (that only one player recognized) but also knew Allistar, calling them both brothers of the shadow.
True to form, Allistar claimed amnesia and the group prepared to cross the hall, but not before Allistar's latent desire for loot (muscle memory?) saw him leap into the sarcophagus that had held Daffyd, and begin searching it. His efforts were rewarded with the observation that the wooden plank on the bottom lifted up, revealing a sealed box large enough to hold a book. The box had no easy means of opening it, but Varda saw it was covered with magical markings and sigils that she couldn't read.
So the box ended up in a backpack for later investigation and the group ate and rested, before moving across the hall.
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Crossing the hall to force the door, the party found themselves in a similar room, complete with another pair of sarcophagi and a die roll indicating no random encounter, just an indicator of one, so they heard that buzzing again. At this point, Roro declared she was going to guard the corridor, so stepped out of the room and sat down. As she had a sewing kit and extra sacks, she began to fashion a chest harness for Daffyd's head - the goal being to free up hands.
With Roro in the corridor, the sarcophagus opening procedures were carried out, and as the lid crashed down, it kicked up so much dust that everyone in the room had to make (and most failed) saves or fall into a coughing fit. When the dust cleared, it revealed a dessicated corpse lying there, but Daffyd's eyebeams revealed jewelry: a necklace, matching bracelets, and matching anklets. This jewelry was divided up between Varda, Roro, and Dack the Boar-Thief. (DM note - does Daffyd's eyebeams have detection properties? I don't yet know!)
The second sarcophagus featured an effigy of what appeared to be a woodsman. In addition, buzzing could be heard from within, and Varda's infravision revealed a heat difference, so they braced for combat as they opened the lid.
Inside was a decomposing body wearing decaying hunter's clothing, everything tattered and stained except for the high soft boots laced up on his feet. In addition, they could see the chest and stomach moving and heaving under the clothing, so the taller sorts circled the open sarcophagus and raised their blades to begin simultaneously striking the corpse and whatever was squirming inside.
With the first strikes, a swarm of cockroaches (the big nasty buggers like what we get here in Alabama) came flying up and out and around, sending the party into a mix of swatting and yelling and panicking.
They even dropped Daffyd's head in the sarcophagus, and roaches began crawling into his mouth. Poor Daffyd.
Despite the noise, the encounter die disappointed me again, and nothing headed their way.
Using fire and smoke (and Brother Frank's mace), the swarm was driven away. With that, Allistar retrieved and donned the fancy boots, because how else will they learn what the boots do?
They rested again before adjourning across the hall, because panicking is hard work. Roro finished her harness and talked nice to Daffyd.
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This was the last room they entered before the session ended.
They could smell brine and sea air once the door crashed down and saw that one of the effigies looked like a stereotypical pirate. Excited comments were made about it likely containing treasure OR a portal, and they were correct on both counts. The lid came off like all the others, and Dave shone the light of Daffyd into the seawater, thrilling to see the lights reflected off the shiny things below. Reaching for a shiny, Dave felt a pull on his arm and failed his save vs spells, then fell in to the far deeper than it should be water. Determined to find some treasure before he died, Dave grasped a goblet that would have fit in with the treasures of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha.
He then began to drown.
Image from generic image search - it might even be AI, but I didn't use such an engine.
This goblet (chalice? using connotation, which word sounds more valuable?) should cover Dave's debts, and probably more besides!
Dave's companions thought quickly and opted to make use of the roped boar to maybe pull Dave out. The rope was weighted and thrown in, and after a few failed attempts, Dave grasped the rope and was pulled out and to safety, Daffyd and the goblet along with him.
Soaking wet and panting, Dave related to the others that there was more treasure where the goblet had come from AND that he had noticed a large shadow moving around in the water, believing (correctly) that something was down there. DM note - at this point I opened the Monster Overhaul to page 277 in eager anticipation, but alas, alea iacta est and no one was eaten.
Without hesitation, Roro announced 'we're going fishing' and stripped down to her unmentionables. She then donned the harness to hold Daffyd in place, so she could see. The others tied a rope around her ankle, and with dagger and sack in hand, she was heaved into the water (she is too short to actually see over the top of these sarcophagi). Roro felt the pull of the magic, but made her save, so would be able to move freely.
Daffyd was annoyed - he may not need to breathe, but that doesn't mean he likes being under water. Soothing him with a head pat, she kicked towards the gleaming gold. The encounter dice were again unkind to the DM, so she was able to scoop up a mix of treasures into the sack, then grab a suspiciously new-looking cutlass thrusting up out of the sand. When Roro tugged the rope as they had prearranged, Dack the Boar-Thief began pulling her out of the water. (As I type this, I realize I missed a chance for the shadow-casting thing to make an appearance and get a jump scare - next time - the players know there is treasure still in the water).
Back in the crypt, the sack was emptied to see what she grabbed: silver trade bars and golden coins. Roro claimed the cutlass for herself, even though it was almost as long as she is tall. Investigation revealed the word Sierra engraved upon the blade.
As Roro toweled off, the group turned to the last sarcophagus and took up their stations. Infravision showed no heat within, and the effigy on the lid was too defaced to tell what might be within.
The boar grunted, the lid crashed down, and the zombie within sat up and swiped at Brother Frank, dealing 1 point of damage and sending him into a tizzy. The rest of the tall folk quickly did the zombie in, and Dave claimed the silver ring found upon its finger.
What will next session hold?
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Today's session ended with lots of treasure and Roro being voted MVP (for making the harness for Daffyd). Of course, they still need to escape to cash it all in. By the time they find a way up, they may make bank on the exploring rooms xp my houserules make use of.
Or die trying.
Total loot:
Necklace (Varda)
Matching bracelets (Varda, Roro)
Matching anklets (Roro, Dack)
Book-sized box covered with magical symbols - I don't recall - Brother Frank, perhaps?
Fine leather hunters' boots (worn by Allistar)
Golden bejeweled goblet (Dave)
A cutlass named Sierra (Roro)
Sack containing 2 trade bars of silver and 289 gold pieces - I don't recall
Silver ring - Dave
If any of my players can remind me about who is carrying what, that would be grand. As the group has no Detect Magic spell, they are relying on gut instinct to determine what, if anything, is magical. I'll need to have this printed and ready to go by next session. This, as well, for those items the party cannot easily determine on their own.
Seriously, the blog d4 Caltrops is the gift that keeps on giving! Go check it out and download/print what will work for your games - you will not be disappointed!
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I may have to change out my d6 for the encounters - with all the noise they are making and time they are taking, something should have wandered their way. Luckily, they are close to keyed trouble, and will probably reach it - and outsmart me again - next session.
Yes, I could have wanderers show up via DM fiat, but I'd rather not.
Encumbrance came up in discussion during the game, so within the next two sessions I will need to provide some encumbrance pages - I really like slot-based inventories, so probably one of them. I have a few I have culled from the internet, so will make my choice closer to time.
I haven't worried about encumbrance so far because they are new PCs with minimal gear, but now as they gain treasure, it will begin to matter. That said, the rate they go through rations may result in room after all.
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