"The Adventures of Nova Scotia Blackman" - Tomb of Annihilation, Chapter 0

by Jeffery Low

My name is John Henry Blackman. I was born in Halifax Nova Scotia on August 23rd,1886. I was the youngest child of four girls and two boys. My parents worked hard to give us kids a good education. My grandparents,  Granpa Boone and Meema Rose, were runaway slaves who sought refuge in Canada in the 1860s. I attended the Royal Acadian School and played in the Coloured Hockey League. I graduated with honours from Dalhousie University and earned my PhD in history from Dartmouth. By 1920 I had become the only coloured faculty member at Miskatonic University. My specialty was ancient cultures. I had a special fascination with the so-called lost cultures - Atlantis, Lemuria, Shamballha, Mu, and the like.

In 1920, I led an expedition to Greenland to investigate the discovery of ruins trapped beneath a glacier. Accompanied by my trusty student assistant, Damon Meier, I explored what appeared to be an ancient tomb constructed of black granite. We passed down a long gallery of columns and found a deep shaft with a spiral staircase. 

We descended the staircase and discovered a side chamber. Within the chamber was a shallow basin atop a thick plinth. I nervously entered the chamber followed closely by Meier. 

The basin was filled with a sticky black fluid. I carefully reached out to prod the fluid with my ice axe. To my surprise, the fluid rose up and engulfed me! 

I was enveloped in darkness and unable to breathe. I struggled in vain against the inky substance that had swallowed me. In that last moment before I passed out, I thought I was done for! 

When I awoke, I was lying alone on a flat slab of black stone on a tropical plain. There was no sign of Damon Meier or the black liquid. I had no idea how I might have been transported from frigid Greenland to my current location. 

I explored my surroundings and soon encountered primitive tribes from what I believed at the time to be western Africa. I quickly learned the rudiments of the local language and enlisted their aid in making my return to civilization. To my confusion, they directed me towards the northeast - towards what I believed to be the Sahel and the Sahara. I hesitantly complied and was surprised to encounter a jungle habitat where I expected a desert and a great medieval city on the shores of a northern sea!

It was there in the ancient city of Akwa-Obio that I made a startling discovery - I was no longer on the planet Earth!

It was my great fortune that I stumbled across Akwa-Obio. The city was the home of a library rivaling that of ancient Alexandria and an institution of learning and philosophy like that of Athens. I was among learned scholars and sages. 

I soon learned that I was on the world of Antara - so named because it was the hidden twin of Earth, existing invisibly alongside Earth and accessible via certain locations and arcane rituals. Antara was the source of the many legendary tales of Atlantis, Avalon, Hybrasil, Hyperborea, and Shamballah. Stories of these lands came to Earth via travellers who somehow crossed over and returned.

Antara was a land of magic and monsters populated by all manner of inhuman races and cultures. Somehow I had found myself transported to a world out of the vivid imagination of Jules Verne or Edgar Rice Burroughs!

My own Earthly origin and scholarly background made me somewhat of a celebrity in the Academy of Akwa-Obio. I became friends with the scholarch of the Academy, an old philosopher named Maara Ihe. Maara Ihe gave me shelter and access to the great library. I learned much about the world in which I now inhabited. Throughout this time I continued to search for a way to return home. Others had apparently managed the feat so I was confident that with enough research I could find the way. 

Maara Ihe was elderly and other scholars envied his position. He knew his time as Scholarch of the Academy was coming to an end.

On the day of his death, Maara Ihe warned me that his rivals viewed me as a curiosity to be studied and wished to prevent me from returning home. As soon as he passed they would confine me to my quarters. He told me to flee the city and seek out a man named Artus Cimber.

Artus Cimber was a former student at the Academy who himself had studied the means of crossing over from Antara and Earth. Artus was last seen in the city of Port Nyanzaru in Chult. He told me to seek him there.

With the passing of my mentor I grabbed what little possessions I owned - my leather coat, my wide-brimmed hat, and my trusty leather whip - and fled the city of Awka-Obio.

I booked passage on the ship Karanja travelling to Port Nyanzaru under the command of Captain Abasi.

Along the way we picked up some additional passengers - a motley assortment from across Antara. I have endeavoured to speak with them and learn their strange customs. I feel I have earned their trust and friendship.

I met a woman with blue skin whose name is Apparently Jones - a strange name perhaps hinting at an Earthly origin? She hails from Akasa, a land of floating islands and hovering mountains among which travel flying airships. She was a former crew member on one such airship. She was an animal handler and a skilled huntress. She was travelling to Port Nyanzaru in search of work. One of the other passengers told me that her blue skin is reportedly the result of her unusual parentage - her father is nothing less than a genie, no doubt from 1001 Arabian Nights!

I made the acquaintance of a man named Bramble Wolf. Mr. Wolf possessed dark skin like myself though his features possessed a strangely bestial countenance. Mr. Wolf was a wise-man of an animistic faith, similar to a shaman or witch-doctor on Earth. He described his people as "Therans" and explained that he was travelling to Chult to find the legendary source of his tribe.

One of the most interesting beings I met on my journey was a bird-man named Qhallebbewk Zriri. Mr. Zriri hailed from a noble family of the aerial city of Aarokar-Nasaris in Akasa. Mr. Zriri was a high-born aristocrat. I came to learn that he was the third-born of his house with little prospect of inheritance. His boorish behavior caused some sort of offence at court so his family banished him from the capital city. Ostensibly he was travelling on pilgrimage to all the colonies of Aarokar-Nasaris. In truth he wished only to perform a great act of heroism that would earn him glory and fame sufficient to forgive his transgressions at home.

Finally there was the jaguar-man named Xoc-Wik. Mr. Wik was a warrior from the jungle land of Bres far to the west. His feline people were known as "B'alam". Mr. Wik was an odd fellow with unusual mannerisms. I eventually learned that he was the only survivor of some kind of tribal genocide. He had travelled the world in search of the group responsible for the death of his people. His next destination was Port Nyanzaru.

The journey was uneventful. We were crossing the equator and the skies were clear. Xoc-Wik was the first to notice something was wrong - there was restlessness among the crew. He had noticed them whispering among each other conspiratorially.  Something was afoot.

Thanks to Xoc-Wik's warning, we were prepared for what happened next.

Coming Soon: Tomb of Annihilation!

Starting next week, I will begin blogging about my new Tomb of Annihilation campaign!

Characters have been made but backstories are still being fleshed out. The adventure begins next week with everyone on a boat headed to Port Nyanzaru.

The setting is a homebrew world of my creation - Antara!

Antara is the wider world that includes Agartta, the location of one of my earlier D&D stories. Antara is a parallel world to our Earth, a place of mystery and legend where one may find Atlantis, Avalon, Shamballah, aliens, dinosaurs, and robot men. Antara is heavily inspired by hollow earth legends and Blavatskian Theosophy.

Characters are subject to change but so far we have:

Nova Scotia Blackman - a black Canadian archaeologist (Human Rogue) from 1920s Earth who was transported from Greenland to the strange continent of Zazamanc! He is searching for a way to return to Earth but has come to appreciate his new home. He is delivering a message to one of the merchant princes of Port Nyanzaru.

Apparently Jones - a demijin caravan guide and animal trainer (Air Genasi Ranger) from Akasa, the land of sky mountains. She is traveling to Port Nyanzaru to find work as an animal handler.

Bramble Wolf - a bestial theran barbarian (Razorclaw Shifter Druid) searching for members of his tribe that were captured as slaves.

Qhallebbewk Zriri - an aarokan aristocrat (Aarocockra Ranger) from the sky-city of Aarokar-Nasaris, banished by his noble family for his boorish behavior. He is travelling to Port Nyanzaru hoping to win the approval of his family by accumulating glory and fame.

Xoc Week - a b'alam warrior (Tabaxi Fighter) from the jungle realm of Bres, searching for the person or people responsible for the destruction of his tribe.

As you can see, I'm messing with the races a bit. I wanted to give the campaign world a more personal touch so I re-skinned all the races with new names and new cultural backgrounds. I wanted the setting to feel more original, more personal, than just inserting D&D races and names. It also allows my players and myself to be much more free in creating histories and personalities for their characters and their cultures.

Likewise, the setting itself. I wanted the freedom to inject things like aliens, time-lost Nazis, and steampunk inventors, so I created what is basically a hollow world setting - but without the constant sun and actual hollow world. My world can be described as "Land of the Lost" meets "Gor" - without the slavery fetish.

More world information is forthcoming - but that info exists primarily to give the characters someplace from which to be. The real action will take place in Chult on the continent of Zazamanc!

Tomb of Annihilation Mini-Review

I picked up Temple of Annihilation last Saturday and have so far read the first few chapters and skimmed the rest.

My VERY brief non-spoiler review so far: I really like it.

It's set on the tropical jungle land of Chult. So no traditional European fantasy tropes - no elves or halflings or dwarves (at least not traditional ones). The human inhabitants are people of color and the non-humans are interesting and non-traditional.

The land is populated with dinosaurs, undead, and interesting non-traditional monsters from the original Fiend Folio (firenewts, jaculi, kamandas, flail-snails, and other favorites).

The story is somewhat smaller in scope. You don't have to save the world this time. You are hired by a wealthy person to find the artifact that's slowly killing her. She doesn't know how long she has to live but the experts with whom she's consulted say its only a few months. I like that the stakes are smaller.

The campaign is basically an unmapped sand-box setting with a number of interesting locations to explore in your search for clues that will lead you to the macguffin. The PCs explore ancient ruins, lost cities, crypts, etc. filled with Indiana Jones-style traps and puzzles in their search for the macguffin.

Also, it's only levels 1-10/11 so, unlike the other 5E D&D hardcover books, you don't have to plan an entire campaign around this one story. Only half a campaign.

The macguffin makes things a little more difficult for the players. You can't regain maximum hit point loss (from all the undead roaming Chult), death saves are 15+, and Raise Dead is off the table.

My only complaint so far is that the players aren't given a lot of leads at the beginning. They're told, "The Soulmonger is located somewhere in a land the size of Indonesia. Go there and find it and destroy it. BTW- in case you want to be paid, I have only a few months left to live."

That's not a lot to go on. You start off in the region's only city. There's not a lot of clues that point you in the right direction. The campaign assumes you just blindly start exploring cities/ruins looking for it until you come across clues that lead you to the right place. But the players don't know that at the start, so the lack of direction can seem daunting.

There are a LOT of interesting little side-adventures that have nothing to do with the main macguffin. My challenge is to point players towards as many side-adventures as I can without the players feeling like they're wasting time. I might remove the ticking clock aspect and replace it with "somewhere in the ruins of Chult is an ancient artifact that will give me eternal life - even after I die. Bring it back to me and I'll pay you a king's ransom!" That will keep them searching every nook and cranny.

My second complaint is more personal and has spoilers.

The campaign takes characters to an updated version of Dwellers of the Forgotten City (an old AD&D module) and an updated version of Tomb of Horrors (also and old AD&D module). This isn't problematic per se, except that I just ran my OWN version of an updated Dwellers of the Forgotten City in my own dinosaur- jungle campaign setting in 2015! So my players might say, "Hey.... waitaminute!"

My third complaint is the map design, which has a white hexgrid overlaid on top of a map with a lot of tiny detail in it, makes it difficult to read.

The big poster map of Chult

I would have preferred a plain flat color map without the unnecessary detail.

Favorite bits so far:

Almiraj

Dinosaur beasts of burden

Betting on dinosaur races

The blank Player's map of Chult - meant to be filled in as explored.

The default start is in Baldur's Gate with traditional D&D PCs or even existing characters. Syndra Silvane hires them to find the missing relic somewhere in Chult and teleports them to Port Nyanzaru.

I rather prefer starting in Port Nyanzaru with non-traditional PC races from Volo's Guide.

• Human
• Tabaxi
• Aaracockra
• Warforged
• Goliath
• Merfolk
• Genasi
• Kenku
• Dragonborn
• Lizardfolk
• Firbolg
• Shifter

They're not NATIVE to Chult, but they all find themselves in this exotic port of call for various reasons. Has a very Tales of the Golden Monkey vibe.

I'm going to have the characters start in Port Nyanzaru at level 1 and have them do some random exploration adventures PRIOR to hearing from Syndra Sylvane at all. We'll just play D&D in Chult for levels 1-5, having fun with Chapter 1 and 2. Then, once at level 5, the Death Curse kicks in. Twenty days into the Death Curse, only THEN will I have Syndra Sylvane hire the PCs to find the Soulmonger.

Check out Galaxy Pirates

Be sure to check out Galaxy Pirates - Enlightenment Gear Book One: Armor and Weapons  by Evil Robot Games (with help from Atomic Rocket Games).

It is available as pay-what-you-want. It provides eight suits of armor, three firearms, and thirteen armor and weapon enhancements for Pathfinder science fiction.

This is a trial product meant to solicit feedback and will be retooled once Starfinder is released.

Full disclosure: This is not a review. Nor is it a paid endorsement. I am not involved with the production of this book whatsoever but I am long-time friends with both authors Paul Fields and Jim Milligan. 

Lessons Learned from Out of the Abyss

I have run through the entire Out of the Abyss campaign. If I had to do it over again, I would do things differently:

1. PCs escape with no gear. I allowed them to rescue their gear from the guard house during their escape. I regret that decision. It lessened the sense of dangerous survival during their flight.
2. No rests during their escape or during travel unless they spend time and make some survival rolls to create a safe space to rest (Each character - PC and NPC - rolls Survival, total up all the results and divide by 15, that's how many people get a long rest). Just lying down in the tunnel and falling asleep should not count as a recuperative rest.
3. I'd make an actual map of major passages between locations and enforce them. I did this towards the end of my campaign (see the map above).
4. Change Sloobloodop and Neverlight Grove chapters to actually give the PCs something to do other than "witness exposition and escape".
   
   For Sloobloodop, I'd give the players a partial victory condition. They might be able to stop the ceremony from summoning Demogorgon or help the other kuo-toa perform a counter-ceremony to drive Demogorgon away temporarily, or find a scroll with Magic Circle on it. Something.
   
   For Neverlight Grove, I'd make the wedding ceremony imminent. Even if the PCs can't defeat Zuggtymoy yet, give them an opportunity to delay the wedding until a later chapter. Let them accomplish something rather than just learn about a wedding to be held later then wake up someplace safe.
   
   The players HATED being un-involved spectators in both Sloobloodop and Neverlight Grove. They wanted to DO SOMETHING. They even commented how Neverlight Grove was essentially a repeat of Sloobloodop structure-wise. Their lack of agency in those chapters fueled the players' disdain for the entire module. They were not fans.
5. More Faerzress. I kept forgetting about it. There should be madness - all the time!
6. I'd replace the Ogremoch's Bane encounter with an actual challenge cribbed from the playtest material.

The Hall of Miners

From the Hall of Miners comes a dull rumbling, like large stones rolling across the cavern floors. The low, narrow passage opens, revealing the entrance to the vast hall. A vaguely humanoid form made entirely of rock lurches toward you, arms raised to strike.

Gallus quickly warns, “Do not attack it unless you wish to drive all the elementals in the hall into a killing frenzy!”

Pechs gather in front of you and extend their hands toward the onrushing elemental. The earth ripples forward until it reaches the elemental’s feet. It charges on a few more steps, slows, then stops, its arms falling to its side. It lowers its head, bowing or admitting defeat, then turns and hurries back into the darkness.

The pechs then form a ring around you.

Gallus says, “We can keep the elementals at bay, and we will try to prevent the Raging Spirit from harming you. But when we reach the spirit, holding it back will take all our efforts. You must talk to it, if you can, or rely on your own powers to drive it away from here. Normal weapons will not avail you, but magic might. We promise to aid you any way we can.”

The pechs wait while the adventurers discuss a strategy. Gallus can offer a few more details about Ogrémoch’s Bane.

• Ogrémoch’s Bane manifests as a cloud of dust, but when angered it is a raging whirlwind of gravel. Entering the whirlwind is likely to be fatal. The pechs can keep it at bay, as long as the adventurers stay within their protective circle.
• The pechs know of no way to coax Ogrémoch’s Bane to leave the area, but that doesn’t mean no such way exists.
• As Gallus said before, the pechs believe that the Raging Spirit’s existence is linked to Entemoch’s Boon. The pechs are not willing to help destroy the Boon.
• If the adventurers suggest taking Ogrémoch’s Bane to Entemoch’s Boon, Gallus realizes that the doing so might render the Bane more vulnerable to attack. He tells the characters this fact. If the characters can lure the Bane to the Boon (see “Talking to the Bane”), the Bane’s presence makes the journey safe. The characters then have to fight the Bane in the Boon’s cavern (see “Fighting the Bane”).

Once the adventurers are ready to proceed, the pechs advance with them into the cavern.

When the characters move on, read:

It takes a few moments for the group to arrive at the center of the cavern. As you near the midpoint, pebbles and dust leap into the air, coalescing into a spinning cloud of debris. The cloud gathers speed and shape, forming into a bloated, humanoid mass with a snarling, bestial visage. Glittering black stones serve as its eyes, which swivel in airy sockets to fix on you.

The monster’s maw tears open, and it roars, “Who dares enter my domain? Kneel! Kneel before me, you insignificant mortals, or face my wrath!”

The pechs lift their hands to create a ward against the Bane. If the characters drop to their knees, the elemental’s curiosity is piqued, and you should use the “Talking to the Bane” section. If the characters fail to kneel, Ogrémoch’s Bane becomes enraged. In this case, go to the “Fighting the Bane” section.

Talking to the Bane

The spirit looms over you, and a deep laugh sounds in the cloud. It then says, “What have we here? Puny mortals, seeking plunder?”

The elemental entertains questions. If necessary, you can call for Charisma checks (DC 11 or 13). Some possible questions and answers follow.

Why are you here? “The gnomes brought me forth when they sought succor and comfort from my master’s hated brother, Entemoch.”

What do you want? “An end to the calling and binding of elementals. The gnomes call up elementals from my master’s service and enslave them. By what right do they do this?”

What will it take for you to move on? “As long as the miserable gnomes profit from Entemoch’s Boon, I will remain. I will undo their works and loose elementals they bind.”

What is Entemoch’s Boon? “Long ago, when the gods were silenced at the beginning of this age of upheaval, the gnomes of Blingdenstone sought wisdom from the spirits of the earth.

They received a blessing from Entemoch, consort to the princess of good earth elementals. This blessing allows the puny gnomes to call forth the elementals and enslave them. The blessing is within a cavern some distance northwest of here. I would destroy it, but I cannot do so without the aid of mortals.”

How can we end the Boon? “Topple the stones of Entemoch’s Boon. Shatter them, and the blessing will end. Only then will I move on. I cannot attack the stones, but I can give you the strength to do so.”

The characters are free to try another approach to persuade Ogrémoch’s Bane to leave Blingdenstone. Use the information presented here to weigh their likelihood of success. Reward creative thinking.

If informed, the svirfneblin endorse no plan to harm or destroy Entemoch’s Boon. Any svirfneblin who learn about the plan try to stop the characters from enacting it.

If the characters go to the Boon, read:  Three twisting columns reach up from the floor of this large, boulder-­‐strewn cavern. Bright runes wind round each pillar, and the earth thrums with energy here.

Each pillar has 100 hit points and can also be broken with a DC 17 Strength check made with disadvantage. Destroying any pillar ends the Boon and banishes the Bane. If Ogrémoch’s Bane is in the cavern of Entemoch’s Boon, it cannot attack the stones, but it can grant a +5 bonus to damage rolls against the stones and eliminate the disadvantage on Strength checks made to break them.

If the Boon is destroyed, the Bane disappears.

Fighting the Bane

The pechs raise a low wall of stone from the cavern floor, and the whirlwind parts around it, unable to pass their barrier. In a moment, the cloud of dust and gravel envelops their entire protective  circle.

Ogrémoch’s Bane has AC 15 and 100 hit points. It is immune to nonmagical weapon damage, and it takes half damage from (has resistance to) any damage not of the force or holy type. In the cavern of Entemoch’s Boon, the Bane loses its weapon damage immunity, but retains its resistance. The Bane cannot be charmed, frightened, put to sleep, or held.

Unable to reach through and harm anyone inside the pechs’ protective ring, the Bane takes no actions other than to whirl around the stone circle.

Flying rocks batter any creature that leaves the pechs’ protection, dealing 1d8 bludgeoning damage each round. Pushing through the ten-­‐ foot area of the whirlwind requires a DC 15 Strength check made as an action. Once per round, the Bane can slam a creature no more than fifteen feet outside the protective circle. The elemental has +4 to hit and deals 1d8 + 4 bludgeoning  damage.

If the characters grow frustrated in fighting the Bane, one of the pechs, grunting with the effort of maintaining the ward, lifts a round stone out of the earth. An instant later, the stone begins to glow, and the pech hands it to the adventurer. This effort causes the ward to falter momentarily, allowing the Bane to deal 1d4 – 1 bludgeoning damage to each character inside the circle. The stone can be thrown as a simple weapon, dealing 1d12 + the character’s Strength or Dexterity modifier force damage to the Bane on a hit. A given pech can create such a stone once per round, at the cost of weakening the ward each time.

Reward the players for creative thinking in this process. Give them 1d6 bonus damage for clever efforts. Increase the bonus damage if the plan requires weakening or leaving the pechs’ ward.

Land of the Magic Cows

painting by Patrick Woodroffe

Way back in 1985, my dad's family lived in a trailer near a pretty pond in the middle of the forest in rural Georgia. I would come visit during the summer and on long boring days I would go exploring around the property with my sister Jennifer when she was like 6 and I was 15.

I made a LARP out of it. We called it "Quest". She was Princess Jennifer. Her father, King Dwayne, had fallen under a magic spell that put him to sleep. Queen Brenda had been taken captive. (our dad worked at night so he slept during the day and Brenda worked at the bank during the day).

Her quest was to explore the realm and find a cure that would wake the King and return the Queen.

She had a backpack with essential equipment, a magic sword, a shield I made out of scrap wood, and some potions. I was the "Quest Master" and I would go wherever she went and narrate what was happening. She'd then act out the fights and challenges I laid before her.

The trailer was the royal castle of King Dwayne and Queen Brenda with a commanding view over all of Roney Valley (my grandfather, who built the pond and road and trailer).

The pond was the Inner Sea. The dock was the Port City. The dirt road was the trade route.

There was a smaller pond choked with weeds and trees that was the Swamp of Death.

My grandfather's memorial was the Necropolis where one might encounter skeletons and zombies.

The steep 10-foot bank next to the pond were the Cliffs of Insanity. There were caves in the cliffs (small dug-out divots) that were inhabited by monsters! A rope tied to a tree at the top allowed one to scale the cliffs.

The swampy area below the earthen dam was called "The Land of the Magic Cows". It was dark and cool and muddy and on the side of the barbed wire fence where cows could go. There was always evidence of cows but we rarely saw them during the day. You could hear them off in the field. So I said the cows were invisible and magic and ruled the forest!

My great-uncle Marion had a workshop up the hill from the pond. That was the tower of the Wizard Marion. The trailer next door was the stronghold of his warrior-defender, Prince John.

My uncle Tim's trailer downstream from the pond was the bandit hideout. Taking that dirt road was fraught with danger and ambush!

The makeshift tree house we built next to the dry creek bed near the trailer was her fortress keep where she could keep watch over the entire Roney Valley.

I drew adventure maps of the domain of King Dwayne and the surrounding realms and dangers. I wish I still had those.

"Rage of Demons" - Out of the Abyss, Chapter 46

THE STORY OF BENJI THE BANANA SLUG
Valerius clutched the bars of the prison cell and cried out in fear, "Alas! What shall we do! We are trapped with no hope of escape!"

Pain wept openly into his trembling hands, "I am useless without my trusty lock picks! We are doomed!"

Willow the Not-Witch put her hands on her hips and stood firm, "Worry not, fellows! I'll summon my trusty familiar. HE will save us!"

Ront began to sob.

Pain gasped, "But how? Phwee-Toop is too large to fit through those bars! All hope is lost!"

"Not Phwee-Toop," declared the confident wizardess, "I shall summon my OTHER familiar! BEHOLD!"

With a sweep of her hand a shower of sparkling glitter fell to the floor. Magically, out of thin air, formed a large slug.


"Benji, The Banana Slug!"

Ront tore himself from weeping and stared at the invertebrate with renewed hope.

"Benji," said Willow, addressing the slug, "Go over to that wall and fetch those keys! Only YOU can help us now!"

Benji began to crawl. Slowly. Deliberately.

"Go, Benji, Go!" shouted Pain.

"He can do it! He can really do it!" exclaimed Valerius.

"Ront eat slug!" said Ront as he licked his tusks.

"No, Ront! He's saving us!" admonished Willow.

Benji continued to crawl. He had covered an inch at best.

"Yay! Benji!" cried Pain.

The door opened and in walked a drow guard. He walked across the room and picked up a sword belt draped over a chair.

"Look out, Benji!" warned Valerius.

"Oh no!" cried Pain.

The drow looked at the slug, shrugged, and left the room.

Benji slowly turned his head in the direction of the door, finally ackowledging that someone had entered the room.

"No Benji! Stay on task! Don't get distracted!" cautioned Willow.

Benji moved a quarter of an inch towards the door.

"Benji! The key! We need the key!"

Benji slowly turned back towards the key across the room.

Another drow entered the room holding a roasted fire beetle leg. He walked over to a table and picked up a container of salt. He accidentally dropped the container, spilling some salt onto the floor. He picked up the container, put some salt onto the beelt leg, took a big bite, and left the room.

"Benji! Be careful!" advised Pain.

"He'll never make it! We're doomed!" cried Valerius.

Benji slowly turned away from the salt scattered across the floor a dozen feet away.

"He's doing it," said Willow, "He's really going to make it!"

Benji passed through the bars of the cell.

"Eventually," added Pain.

DM Note- My players made up an entire scene around Benji that pretty much played out like I quoted above, without the drow. 

OUT OF THE ABYSS, CHAPTER 46

"THE RAGE OF DEMONS"

The Demon Lords have escaped 
their prison in the Infinite Abyss
and have rampaged across the
subterranean realm known as the Underdark.
The surface realm is not safe
as their demonic armies break free
and ravage the countryside.

Five heroes forged an alliance
with the evil wizard Vizerian
and hatched a plan that will
hopefully defeat the demons
and save both worlds...

THE EXPEDITION

Ser Valerius Adeques - (PC, human paladin 11, male) Defender and champion of the old gods of nature, commander of the forces from the Order of the Gauntlet.

Ront - (PC, half-orc barbarian 11, male) Savage orc of the Iron-Thews tribe seeking redemption for his failures.
Pain Grille' - (PC, halfling rogue 11, male) Wily street urchin from Waterdeep, was turned to stone in Blingdenstone but got better, commander of the Lord's Alliance forces.

Cordon - (PC, human cleric 11, male) Morninglord, Holy Radiant of Lathandor the Sun God, on a holy quest to activate the Maze Engine.
Willow - (PC, human wizard 11, female) "the solution is always fireball!"

The Shield Guardian - (NPC, shield guardian) a contribution from Lord Zelraun Roaringhorn of the Harpers.

Phwee-toop - (NPC, owl) Willow's familiar.

ESCAPE
The expedition escaped Menzoberranzan with the grimoire of Gromph Baenre.

They travelled several leagues through Vizerian's secret tunnel and stopped to rest at one of his several niches built for that purpose.

Valerius looked into the large diamond that contained the tiny form of Pain Grille', trapped within its faceted interior, "Yeah. That town can go to hell! I say we go with the original plan and summon the demon lords in Menzoberranzan. The drow are decadent and evil. Their very existence defies the natural order. They deserve to be punished."

"Right," agreed Ront.

Grinn Oustyll became agitated, "No! You can't! We had a deal! You said you'd find another place!"

"We'll talk about it later," warned Valerius.

After a logn rest, Grinn Oustyll said, "We must hurry. It is five more days travel to Araj. The drow may have found the secret tunnel and followed us."

"Not to worry," said Willow, "I can get us there much faster!"

She cast a spell of teleportation that instantly returned them to Vizerian's hidden home - Araj, the Tower of Vengeance.

"That new?" asked Pain.

"Yep! I've been practicing!" explained Willow.

FINAL PREPARATIONS


They walked in on Vizerian wearing a bath robe and sipping a cup of kaeth with a halfling companion, "Oh, you have returned early! Kleeve, resume your form."

The halfling transformed back into a hulking grey slaad.

"Grey slaad can change shape. Did you know that? So useful! Would you like some kaeth? I have it imported from Calimsham. If you'd like to purchase some, I know a guy."

They declined.

"Very well, did you bring the book?"

They produced the book.

Vizerian was pleased. He gently took the leather-bound tome and began flipping through the pages.

"Then we can begin immediately," he breathed, distractedly.

"Wait!" said Willow, We have a request first. One of our number became trapped within a diamond. We were told you could free him."

Valerius produced the diamond containing the miniature Pain.

"Yes, a spell of imprisonment. It appears to be the work of my former pupil, Gromph. Yes. Bring him here."

Vizerian dispelled the magic of the diamond and freed Pain.

"Right, with no further interruptions, I will recap the plan so that there is no misunderstanding."

DM Note- There seemed to be a lot of confusion among the players regarding details of the plan. Some players assumed details that were incorrect, others simply forgot.

"While you were gone, I completed the manufacture of the Dark Heart. Kleeve?" The grey brute left and returned with a large purple gemstone in the shape of a heart. It was larger than a dwarf.

"You will take the dark heart to Menzoberranzan, where this all started. You will also take these bags of salt. You will sprinkle the salt around the perimeter of the city. The salt will create a gargantuan magic circle."

There were several questions and concerns about the salt.

"The salt does not have to form a contiguous line as long as it forms a rough circle! Anyway, take the dark heart to the center of the city. Use this sending amulet to alert me when the dark heart is in place. I will begin the ritual.

"The ritual lasts nine hours, so you can't let anyone disturb the dark heart! Your job will be to defend it, so you'll have to be inside the circle.

"Once the ritual is complete, several rifts shall open within the circle. The demon lords and their retinue on the Prime Material Plane will emerge through the rifts. The Dark Heart will magically compel them to fight each other in order to be the one that possesses the Dark Heart. You'll have to do your best to stay alive during this time because its YOUR job to fight and destroy the demon that wins! Any other questions so far?"

There were no other questions.

"Excellent. You will use the sending stone to tell me when it is done. I will teleport to the amulet so that I can survey the destruction! Is everything clear?"

There were nods of assent.

"Good. And to ensure proper adherence to the letter of the plan, I have taken the liberty of placing your travelling companions under my protective custody. They are safe, for now, and will remain so as long as Menzoberranzan is destroyed per our arrangements."

Vizerian stared at each of the members of the expedition, daring them to defy him.

Grinn began to tremble. He couldn't take it. He was about to break.

Pain interrupted the apprentice, "Valerius! There's like forty bags of salt there! Where did you get all this salt?"

Vizerian cocked an eyebrow, "I have plans that will require a lot of magic circles, so I bought in bulk. I know a guy." The drow wizard rubbed his chin, "In retrospect, I purchased WAY too much. I'm not going to summont THAT many... Why do you ask?"

"We can't carry it all. We're going to need our pack lizards."

"Very well, Grinn, go fetch their pack lizards from the stables."

"Wait up, we'll help you!" said Pain, wriggling his eyebrows at his friends, "ALL- of- us!"

Ront finally perked up, "Uh? Right!" Everyone joined Pain and Grinn in the stables.

SECOND THOUGHTS
On their way to the stables, Ront said to Valerius, "I can kill dat guy, right?"

Valerius, angered by the abduction of his charges, replied, "Oh, he's going to die alright. But not yet. We need him to perform the ritual," he cast a suspicious glance towards Willow, "I guess."

Once they were alone, Grinn blurted, "You can't do it! Please don't destroy Menzoberranzan! I will stop you!"

Valerius grimly replied, "Try it."

Cordon pointed out, "There are too many innocent slaves there. If only there was some way to get them out."

Willow agreed, "No. I have a problem with summoning the demon lords in Menzoberranzan. Despite their reputation, even drow should be considered innocent until proven evil. Individual drow should be judged for their evil acts. We shouldn't punish an entire city en masse."

Valerius considered this, "Where else should we do it, then? Gracklstugh?"

Ront nodded, "Yeah! Screw that town!"

Willow suggested the large quarry where they found the Adamantine Tower.

Pain, who had been patiently listening, finally spoke, "I know the perfect place. Hag island."

Ront pursed his lips in recognition.

"Where's that?" asked Valerius.

"It's a place we found while we were escaping Velkenvelve. It's uninhabited and in the middle of the Darklake. In fact, most people are afraid of it because of the hags that used to live there."

"Used to?" inquired Willow.

Pain grinned, "Yeah. We took care of that. Anyway, I have a magic arrow that can show us how to get there. We'll just need to get a boat in Jewelshine-on-Darklake."

Ront began laughing, "You should seen him! We told him he poisoned! Jimjar and Ront faked it! He believed! Him thought he was going die! SO FUNNY!"

Pain grimaced, "Yeah, hilarious."

Valerius then asked, "But what about the Warriors of the Gauntlet? They're being held hostage."

Pain turned to Grinn, "Okay, Grinn, we're not going to Menzoberranzan, but we're going to need your help."

PASSAGE TO HAG ISLAND
Once prepared and assembled, Willow transported the expedition to Jewelshine-on-Darklake via a teleportation spell. From there they hired a duergar lake boat owned by their old contact Bareback Assbreaker to transport them to Hag Island.

DM Note- Willow could not teleport them there because she had never been there and it had been more than six months since Ront and Pain had left the location. She did not feel comfortable teleporting them to an unknown location.

Ront, for some reason, negotiated the fare.

"How much?"

Captain Assbreaker considered the request, "Oh, seven gold pieces each should be sufficient I think."

Ront paid the dwarf and turned to Valerius, "Can I at least kill HIM?"

Captain Assbreaker, taken aback by the comment, interjected"Ahem! Now it's seven HUNDRED gold pieces each!"

Valerius rubbed his forehead, "No, I'm sorry. My friend here was joking. We'll pay fourteen gold pieces each for your trouble."

They loaded the lake-boat and proceeded to the destination with Pain's magic arrow pointing the way.

As they neared the island, Captain Assbreaker voiced further concern, "We are entering dangerous waters. Hags haunt this part of the lake. My crew is worried."

Ront asked there had been any hag-related incidents lately. Captain Assbreaker admitted there had been none in many tridons but also said it wasn't unusual for the hags to become dormant for long periods. Ront assured the captain that they had dealt with the hags and that was safe.

A small island became dimly visible at the edge of the light cast from Valerius' sword Dawnbringer. The only structure was an ancient temple complex covered in moss and slime. The steps leading into the temple entrance descended into the black water.

Despite Ront's assurances of safety, the boat dropped the expedition off at the temple steps and left. Captain Assbreaker pledged to return in two tridons to pick them up.

THE SUMMONING
The party disembarked and transported the Dark Heart to the bottom of deep well inside the central building of the temple complex. The well sat directly below an open oculus in the ceiling. Ront and Valerius then spread the salt all around the perimeter of the island.

In addition, Valerius used some remaining salt to create a small magic circle on a spit of land that would protect the party from the coming demons.

Willow used the sending amulet to notify Vizerian that preparations were complete. A hundred miles away, Vizerian began the nine hour ritual.

Time passed slowly.

Hours later, five glowing vortices began to appear over the island. The vortices grew until each was a hundred feet across. Demons of all shapes and sizes poured through the disk-shaped portals. Some demons flew. Some demons leaped to the ground. Some demons resembled giant insects. Some demons looked like humans. The demons instinctively began to attack each other. The island was soon awash in hundreds of demons in a grand melee.

Then the demon-lords stepped through.

Baphomet, the Demon-Prince of Minotaurs, emerged through a gate preceded by the nalfeshnee demon known as Slaughtertusk. The nalfeshnee was leashed to a long spiked chain. Baphomet's forces consisted of dozens of Barlgua and other bestial demons.

Yeenoghu, the Demon-Prince of Gnolls, emerged accompanied by demonic gnolls.

Grazz't, the Dark Prince, appeared with a force of flying humanoid succubi and incubi.

Orcus, the Demon-Prince of the Undead, emerged with an army of demonic undead.

Demogorgon, the two-headed Prince of Demons, crawled through with an army of multicephalic demon warriors and writhing tentacled beasts of chaos.

The demon-lords looked around in momentary confusion. Their bewilderment was short-lived as each immediately focused on the central temple and the prize within - the Dark Heart!

DM Note- I played out the ensuing battle between the demon-lords. I gave each player a demon-lord to control. They rolled off and they picked demon-lords in a draft from highest result to lowest. To give them an incentive to fight, I told them that the winner of the demon battle got to level up their PC before the final face-off. I gave them about fifteen minutes to familiarize themselves with their demon-lord. Then I rolled initiative.

THE RAGE OF DEMONS
Baphomet immediately charged his hated enemy Yeenoghu. The two traded blow for blow. Baphomet summoned up magical stone in an effort to imprison Yeenoghu but the hyena-like demon was able to claw his way out.

Orcus flew through the air and landed atop a wing of the temple complex. He bellowed as his undead army poured over the building to do battle with the demon horde below. Demogorgon waded through the demons towards his rival. The two-headed demon-lord climbed atop the temple and the pair clashed in an epic struggle!

Grazz't was content to let the other demon-lords fight. Grazz't used his magical powers to teleport across the battlefield. He worked in conjunction with his succubi and incubi. They took on the forms of identical mortal humans and magically disappeared and reappeared at random in order to confuse the other demons. No one was able to accurately track his location throughout the battle.

After Grazz't had decided whom he wanted to fight, he magically appeared next Baphomet and struck a surprise blow. This turned the tide of the otherwise even fight and allowed Yeenoghu to defeat the bestial Baphomet.

Baphomet fell and Yeenoghu cackled in hideous hyena-like laughter. The demon-lord drained the life force of his fallen foe, adding it to his own!

DM Note- Surprise benefit of killing your opponent! You got half your lost hit points back and all your spent automatic saving throws restored. I wanted to keep the survivor "fresh" for the final fight but I didn't want the players to know that when they started the demon fight.

Orcus and Demogorgon traded blow after blow. Grazz't appeared and attacked Demogorgon, giving Orcus the opening he was looking for. Orcus pointed his legendary wand of power at Demorgorgon. Demogorgon collapsed, dead. Orcus then absorbed Demogorgon's power.

Yeenoghu began hunting for Grazz't. Unable to tell one shape-changed demon from another, Yeenoghu attacked every humanoid in sight, destroying them in his search for the demon-lord.

DM Note- I didn't bother with the minor demons. They couldn't hurt the demon-lords and I didn't want to keep track of them. I just threw a bunch of demon miniatures onto the table and described the swirling mass of demons doing battle. Whenever Yeenoghu attacked a succubus, I rolled a 1d6. On a result of 1-2, it was Grazz't. On any other result, the succubus fell dead. 

Yeenoghu's was eventually able to hit Grazz't but the demon-lord simply teleported away again. Yeenoghu ultimately gave up on finding Grazz't and climbed over the central temple building and spun his spiked flail at the Prince of the Undead. Orcus, through invigorated by absorbing the life force of Demogorgon, was still drained and took flight to avoid Yeenoghu's deadly attacks.

Grazz't magically appeared on Orcus' back and attacked the demon. Orcus spun his body around and Grazz't fell to the ground, creating a crater. Grazz't simply got up and teleported once more onto the back of Orcus. Orcus flew too close to Yeenoghu and was struck by his opponent's spiked flail. Orcus fell and Yeenoghu absorbed his power. Yeenoghu picked up Orcus' mighty wand, sniffed it, and threw it into the black waters of the Dark Lake.

This outcome did not bode well for Grazz't. The demonic prince of decadence was out of duplicates. Yeenoghu bore down on Grazz't and quickly killed him, absorbing his energy in the process.

THE FINAL BATTLE
Yeenoghu turned his attention to the lesser demons, eventually clearing them from the island. Now Yeenoghu stood alone. He turned and faced the band of heroes huddled within the magic circle on the small spit of land at the end of the island. He charged the circle berserk with rage.

Ront broke the circle and charged the demon lord. Valerius followed suit astride his celestial lion. Pain likewise moved in to attack.

Willow took flight on her magic broom and began flying in a wide arc around the battle. Her hope was to search for and recover the Wand of Orcus. Meanwhile the shield guardian tended the pack lizards and herded them away from the battle.

Cordon called upon some ineffectual miracles and did his best pray for the health of his comrades. He eventually drew his mace and joined his fellows in combat with the bestial demon-lord.

The fighting was fierce. Though Yeenoghu caused grievous injury to his opponents he was ultimately unable to stand against their combined onslaught. With a mighty strike from his magic greatsword, Ront sliced through the demon-lord, sending the vile beast back to the pits of the Abyss!

EPILOGUE
The battle was won. The demon-lords had been returned to their prison.

Willow cast spells that allowed her to breathe water and sense magic. Utilizing her magical robe of eyes wich granted her unearthly perception she dove beneath the waves in search of the Wand of Orcus.

While she searched, the others rested. After an hour, Willow emerged from the inky waters with the wand in her hand, her face sneered with a sense of victory and superiority. Her eyes glowed with an intense power.

Valerius heard a voice on Vizerian's amulet of sending asking how the battle went. He told Vizerian that the battle had been won.

"Excellent! I shall arrive shortly to survey the destruction of that vile city!"

Everyone gathered together to prepare for the wizard's imminent arrival. Willow began casting a new spell.

A moment passed and Vizerian and Kleeve appeared out of thin air. Vizerian looked around and became enraged.

"What treachery is this? This is not Menzoberranzan! Perfidy! Deceit! Your underlings shall suffer for your deception!"

Valerius replied, "Nope. We took care of that. Your little apprentice is working with us. Even now he is setting our people free. It turns out he didn't care much for the destruction of his home."

Vizerian screamed in rage and frustration, "Then I shall simply kill you now where you stand!"

Willow quipped, "Nope! Bye now!"

She cast a spell of teleportation and the entire group disappeared.

They reappeared on the surface. It was a sunny spring day.

Pain, who had not seen the sun in nearly two years, collapsed onto the grass and laughed.

THE END.

DM Notes - The Final Battle
The final battle between the demon-lords started off interesting but quickly became a slog. After each demon-lord's turn, I'd have to stop and ask each player, in initiative order, "Does Demogorgon take any Legendary Actions? Does Orcus take any Legendary Actions?" etc. So each turn became a complete round!

Since the demon-lords were essentially immune to any of the spells the other demon-lords might cast, it quickly bogged down into a slug fest. Each demon-lord, on their turn, would take a multi-attack. At the end of that turn each OTHER demon-lord got a Legendary Action. It quickly devolved into "Tail Lash" to "Claw" to "Tail Lash" to "Claw" to "Tail Lash" to "Claw", repeated ad nauseum.

Frankly, I was surprised Yeenoghu won but I shouldn't have been. Two factors contributed this:

1) Yeenoghu deals a lot of damage with his flail. 

2) Grazz't was a spoiler that did extra damage to Baphomet, causing him to run out of hit points before Yeenoghu did, then did the same with Orcus vs. Yeenoghu. 

The final battle lasted maybe three rounds. Yeenoghu got in some good rampage damage but ultimately couldn't hold out against Pain.

DM Notes - Vizerian
The players were done with this campaign. Frankly, they didn't really like it. They didn't enjoy adventuring in the Underdark and they didn't really enjoy any of the chapters as-written. The parts they enjoyed most were the parts I added or embellished - the Hag Island encounter and the Maze Engine. 

During the last session, I did my best to make Vizerian a jerk. The players REALLY wanted to fight him. But at the end, when Vizerian finally appeared, I asked them, "Do you want to continue next week and fight Vizerian?"

They said, "NO! No more! We're done!"

Next Week - I'll be playing for a while!

One of the players would like to run the game for a while, so I'll be taking a break from logging the events of our campaign. I'll be returning to this blog every once in a while to work on my next upcoming campaign - All That Remain, a D&D campaign set in the waning days of a dying Earth.