Friday, September 6, 2019

The Mysterious Fields of Force - Ghosts of Saltmarsh, Chapter 9


Their rest completed and having exhausted all avenues apparent to them, the party retraced their steps to the stairs where they descended. They reluctantly and cautiously explored the corridor that reeked of urine and decay.

They entered into a large room that once contained barred holding cells along the left and right walls. The barred doors to each cell were open. There was a heap of partially eaten creatures piled in one corner of the room. A large monstrosity with three stumpy legs, two long tentacles, and a single eye stalk terminating in three beady red eyes. It took notice of the party's entrance and opened a wide disgusting mouth full of half-eaten carrion and sharp teeth, hissing its displeasure!





CHAPTER 9
"THE MYSTERIOUS FIELDS OF FORCE"
The A-Team:
  • Avastana "Aella" Kádár - Neutral, Half-Elf  Outlander and Sorceress from Ket. (Absent)
  • Annor Whalerson - Neutral Good, Human Marine and Fighter from Saltmarsh. 
  • Marlin Whalerson - Neutral Good,  Human Seeker and Rogue.
  • Auric Ravenson - Neutral Good, Human (?) Shipwright and Cleric.
With special guest star...
  • "Amnesia" - Human (?) Amnesiac Rogue.


THE OTYUGH


Marlin stepped forward and attempted to communicate with the strange creature, assuring it the party meant it no harm and requesting safe passage through the door behind it. The creature, known as an otyugh, responded by telepathically transmitting images of the party turning and leaving safely followed by images of the party trying to move to the door only to be horribly killed and eaten by the otyugh. Marlin once again tried to negotiate with the otyugh but its response was only more urgent. The otyugh's message was clear - it would not allow the party to pass.




Unable to come to an agreement, Marlin told his brother Annor to do his thing.

Annor grinned, hefted his claymore, and charged the scabrous beast!





The otyugh was surrounded by half-eaten carcasses and body parts which provided difficult footing. Annor slashed at the creature only to be picked up by one of its tentacles! The otyugh bit into Annor, delivering a poison that rendered Annor immobile! The otyugh proceeded to slam Annor into the wall, the floor, and the ceiling!

Marlin and Amnesia moved to flank the otyugh. Marlin was grabbed by the beasts other tentacle and likewise bitten! The otyugh repeatedly slammed both brothers against every hard surface. Amnesia and Auric were ultimately able to destroy the creature.

After the battle, it was obvious that Annor was not feeling well. The poison was still coursing through his body. Auric gave Annor an antitoxin but discovered that the elixir was preventative and was useless. He then offered a prayer to the Raven King to restore Annor's health. Auric's prayers were heard and Annor immediately felt better.

DM Note-I don't think we've had a good otyugh encounter in 5e before now but this was great! It was challenging and the players were really starting to sweat!

The party fighter got grappled then bitten. The follow-up slam attacks are bad news! The first slam stuns the fighter! Because he was stunned, he automatically failed Strength checks and couldn't escape the grapple! So he was slammed again each subsequent turn and kept failing his Constitution saving throws and taking 2d6 +3 damage per round!

When Marlin was grappled, there was a collective gasp of "Oh shit!" but they were able to pull it out in the end.

AMNESIA SCOUTS AHEAD

The door behind the otyugh was barely on its hinges and nearly fell over when opened. The room beyond was filled with debris from two rough tunnels dug into the earth - one to the left and one to the right. Each tunnel was large enough for a bear to crawl through.

Amnesia told the others to wait while she scouted ahead. She stealthily crawled through the tunnel to the right. After about thirty feet, she found a den occupied by a large bear-like creature called an owlbear covered in feathers. The creature was grossly overweight and almost egg-shaped. It was sleeping and snoring.

DM Note-
"(inhale) hoot-oot-oot-oot-oot!"

Worried that she alone could not kill such a large creature even while it slept, she retreated and rejoined the others. The party decided to return to the nearby armory to rest a few hours and regain their strength.

Marlin set up a noise-making trap outside the armory to alert the party of potential intruders. It was activated on two separate occasions but nothing tried to enter the armory itself. As they rested, Marlin's lantern ran out of oil. The only light in the subterranean chamber came from the faintly glowing crystals of the magical residue encrusting the walls. It was not enough to see by but one could just make out the dim outlines of the walls and the silhouettes of the others in the room.

DM Note-
I had each character make a DC 13 Constitution saving throw at the end of the long rest to see if they had received any mutations from prolonged exposure to the magical aura generated by the tower's force field. No one failed their saves so no mutations were had.

THE OWLBEARS
The party, now rested, decided to exit the armory and re-enter the chamber of the otyugh. Amnesia once more scouted ahead to the den of the sleeping owlbear. It was gone.

The party decided to travel as a group down the excavated tunnel to the left. Marlin was out of lantern oil and the party decided to keep their torches for emergencies. Auric prayed for light and caused an arrow to become illuminated. Marlin carried the arrow in the darkness.

After a few dozen feet they emerged into a dark chamber. Marlin threw the glowing arrow into the center of the room. The sudden illumination revealed that the chamber was occupied by three adult owlbears!



Each owlbear was strangely mutated by exposure to the magical aura. One owlbear had segmented eyestalks. The other had strangely scintillating feathers that changed colors to match the magical crystal residue. Finally there was the grossly overweight owlbear who drooled from his misshapen beak.

The owlbear with eyestalks and the owlbear with scintillating feathers rushed the entrance to engage with the intruders. A fierce battle ensued. The owlbear with eyestalks was the first to fall. To everyone's surprise, the owlbear's wounds slowly healed and it got back up off the ground to rejoin the fight! This continued - the owlbear would fall to an injury, heal, and get back up again - for several minutes!

The owlbear with the scintillating feathers was the second to fall, though its position was quickly replaced by the overweight owlbear. To Marlin's surprise, his deadly sneak attacks proved ineffective against the owlbear's ponderous bulk. Soon it, too, fell before Annor's mighty steel.

This left only the regenerating owlbear with eyestalks. Auric suggested that fire might be needed to kill it, but no one had any! Amnesia quickly drew a torch and a firestarter. She lit the torch and used it to strike the regenerating owlbear. This time the creature remained dead!


THE NURSERYThe A-Team pushed forward, following the owlbear tunnels deeper into the earth. The tunnel opened into another den. This den consisted of a large owlbear matron guarding two small owlbear chick-cubs (chubs? chublets?).

The party decided to give the matron a wide berth and continued on. Since they made no threatening gesture towards the hatchlings, the matron allowed them to pass unmolested.

They soon came across another excavated den. This time one wall of the den consisted of the edge of the cloaking force field they encountered above-ground. The force field seemed to extend well below ground. Additionally, this close to the field they could see the other side. Within the field was a few inches of dirt and exposed sections of an underground structure - not only the force field but the tower itself extended below ground!

The den was a dead end, however, which revealed no underground entrance into the tower so they retraced their steps past the owlbear matron and into the room with the two tunnels.

Assuming there had to be a secret door in this room, Marlin examined every inch of wall. Indeed he found a concealed door revealing a hidden torture chamber. The torture chamber had not been used in decades. Within the iron maiden they found another secret door revealing a set of stairs descending further down.

THE FORCE FIELD ACID TRAPThe spirals stairs descended into a thirty foot wide by fifty foot long room. The room was divided into four sections by three shimmering transparent force fields. On the right wall before the first field was a lever in the up position. On the left wall in between the first and second fields was a second lever in the up position. A third lever was on the right wall between the second and third fields, and a fourth lever was on the left wall after the third force field. There was an exit on the far wall.


Marlin used a magical cantrip to remotely trip the first lever. The first force field disappeared.

Marlin used the same cantrip to remotely trip the second lever. The first force field reappeared and a caustic liquid sprayed from hidden spigots in the ceiling between the first and second force fields. They watched for a while as the liquid began to fill up. They waited a little more hoping to see when the liquid drained but it never did.

Eventually Marlin remotely tripped the third lever and the second force field disappeared. The caustic liquid spilled into the third area and continued to fill from the nozzles in the ceiling.

The fourth lever was beyond the range of Marlin's cantrip.

Marlin pushed the first lever back up but nothing happened. He remotely pulled it back down and the first force field disappeared, allowing the accumulated liquid to fill into the first section of the room. Everyone quickly backed up onto the stairs to avoid the dark foul-smelling vaporous liquid.

Pushing the second lever back up did nothing. Pulling it down reactivated the first field again but deactivated the second. Pushing the third lever back up did nothing. Pulling it down deactivated the second field again.

The members of the A-Team were at a loss. Nothing they could do could deactivate the third force field or drain the caustic liquid.

Marlin scanned the walls intensely and found a discolored stone on the right wall in between the first and second force fields. By this time the room was filled with at least three feet of caustic liquid.

Auric sprouted two ethereal raven wings from his back and flew over to the wall. He pressed on the discolored stone and all three force fields disappeared. The liquid spilled into the entire room and out the exit on the far side. It eventually stopped spreading at about one foot deep.

After some discussion a plan evolved. Auric flew across carrying Amnesia.

Annor told Marlin to climb on his back so he could carry him. Marlin said, "Okay, agreed. Ready?"

Annor said, "Ready" and turned around to allow Marlin to climb onto his back.

Marlin took off running through the caustic liquid, splashing as he fled. He got thirty feet and swooned. He fell unconscious into the steaming fluid.

Annor rolled his eyes and sighed. He ran through the burning liquid, picked up his unconscious brother, and continued. He eventually joined Amnesia and Auric in the sloped corridor on the other side.

Auric revived Marlin and the party continued.

THE SKELETON KEYSThe corridor curved around to the right before abruptly making a sharp angle to the left, before opening into a strange cylindrical room with a curved wall on the far end. A circle in the floor in the far end of the room showed four small equidistant finger-sized holes. The exit to the room was another shimmering field of magical force.

Marlin examined the holes and deduced that they were key holes.

After much consideration, Amnesia finally shouted, "The skeleton fingers!"

Auric suddenly remembered the key-shaped fingers found on the skeletons in the flying sarcophagi room. The party produced the keys and simultaneously entered them into each hole.

Simultaneously turning each key deactivated the force field and the party continued into the corridor beyond.

YOU CANNOT BREATHEThe party was presented with a room with two doors - one to the left and one to the right - both covered in intimidating arcane sigils. A quick examination by Marlin proved the sigils to be fancy looking gobbledygook with no actual magic. They chose the door to the right. Marlin could find no traps on the door so Annor confidently strode inside.

There was a short corridor that turned left. Annor turned the corner and entered a small twenty foot by twenty foot room. A large smiling mouth was carved in the far wall. There was no exits.

Before Marlin could join him, a heavy iron door slid from the ceiling at the entrance to the room, sealing Annor within.

The mouth on the wall magically came to life. As it spoke the phrase, "You cannot breathe!" it exhaled a colorless odorless gas. Annor began coughing and suffocating. He fell to the floor, unable to inhale.

The heavy door would not budge. There was no special mechanism or hinge, it was just a four hundred pound metal door! Marlin called Amnesia forward to help and both of them did their best to lift the door.

With great effort and the help of a crowbar they were successful in raising the iron door high enough for Auric to reach in and grab Annor. Auric pulled the warrior safely out of the room and the others let the door slam back closed.

Annor was saved but felt weakened. He thanked the others and continued.

THE LONG CORRIDORAnnor, Marlin, Amnesia, and Auric took the left door. It opened into a corridor that turned immediately left and then down a long corridor that disappeared into the darkness. Auric caused one of Marlin's arrows to glow and Marlin launched the arrow down the corridor, revealing an eventual sharp left turn a hundred feet away.


Marlin used a magical cantrip to remotely animate his crowbar. He sent it ahead of the group, striking the floor hoping to trigger any pit traps. In addition, he moved slowly, carefully pressing his weight on one foot with each step while preparing for a sudden drop.

Just over halfway down the corridor was a section of the floor that was obviously discolored. Marlin chuckled at the almost amateurish pit trap but the obviousness triggered further paranoia.

As expected, the obvious pit trap gave way beneath the crowbar revealing a twenty foot deep pit trap lined with sharpened spikes.

Trusting his instincts, he continued tapping the floor on the other side. This time he found another better concealed pit trap just beyond the first. He informed the others to keep their eyes peeled. Whoever designed these traps was trying to be clever.

Made aware of the pits, the party tied themselves together with rope and were able to clear each of the traps with a running jump.

The corridor turned left and continued into the darkness, surpassing even the range of a glowing arrow.

Marlin spotted another obvious trap, but he was wise to cleverness of the designer. He anticipated a better hidden trap BEFORE the obvious one. He was right. Once again made aware of the traps the party easily jumped over them.

The rest of the corridor proceeded uneventfully for almost two hundred feet. Marlin continued his careful inspection of each step in front of him but found no traps.

However, Marlin's paranoia was rewarded when he found another hidden trap a few dozen feet before the corridor turned left again. This time there was no obvious sign. Annor thanked Marlin and leaped over. Marlin cried out for Annor to stop but was too late. Annor continued walking to the bend in the corridor and stepped on a second well-hidden trap. Annor fell through the false floor but was caught by the rope connecting him to the rest of they party. Marlin, Amnesia, and Auric were able to brace themselves as the rope went taut and Annor slammed into the wall of the pit, dangling over the spikes below him. Annor pulled himself up and apologized to the others.

The party managed to clear this third set of pit traps and turned left. The corridor continued for a hundred feet and turned left again. A soft blue glow emanated from around the corner ahead.

"Where ARE we?" mused Annor.

"I HATE Wizard Dungeons!" complained Auric.

THE LOCKED CHEST
Beyond the corner was a rectangular room with soft rounded corners. There was a metal door on the opposite wall covered in arcane sigils, this time for real.






In the center of the room was an iron chest likewise covered in similarly arcane sigils. There was no keyhole and no lock for Marlin to pick. Annor stepped forward and opened the lid to the chest. A small fireball burst from the chest, singeing Annor as he shielded his face with his arm.

Inside the chest was a simple iron key.


THE MYSTERIOUS LEVERThe key opened the door on the far wall. Beyond was a seventy foot corridor that ended in the shimmering force field. A silver band was inset in the floor, walls, and ceiling of the corridor about twenty feet down the corridor. Set in the wall of the corridor mere three inches outside the force field was a lever. Another silver band was set in the floor, ceiling, and walls just outside the lever.

By all accounts, it appeared that the lever was designed to be within the force field but - for whatever reason - was not.

Auric pulled the lever down. The force field disappeared, revealing an ornate marble door.

Marlin opened the door.


To be Continued...

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