Category: The Story So Far

After recovering from the battle with the vampire, the party reluctantly continued onward, toward the Lost Laboratory of Kwalish.

En route, they came across an orc war party that turned out to be much tougher than the last band of orcs the adventurers ran into.

A little while later, Sytarii discovered that he had not one, but two decks of cards in his pockets. Throwing one of them down, the party suddenly found itself face-to-face with a rather large, very angry, red dragon. This was an illusion created by the card, but as they readied for battle, it was quite apparent that they took the threat seriously. Picking up the card, the dragon vanished.

Some time later, the troupe came across a hunting party of Hobgoblins. Sytarii made a grand show of summoning forth a rather large, very angry, red dragon, and the hobgoblins fled.

Finally arriving at a cave mouth, the party ventured forth, only to find themselves hopelessly lost in a labyrinth. Soon enough, they were charged by a Minotaur. And then another. After defeating them soundly, they miraculously found the way out of the maze and appeared on a rocky outcropping overlooking a large bowl shaped valley with what looked to be a city floating hundreds of feet in the air, held aloft by some horrendously loud engines.

Facing them, at the end of what looked like a dock in mid air, was a sphinx. She challenged them to stump her with a riddle. After a couple of tries and the consequent loss of intelligence, the party was able to ask a riddle she could not solve and so she summoned a flying skiff from the floating city to carry them across the gap.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	3,698	34,314	8 (48,000)	Elven Chain Luckstone Drift Globe ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Robe of Eyes
Fenvalur Reyroris/Kasmorn	3,698	33,643	7 (34,000)	Ring of Protection Flametongue Longsword Wand of Winter +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Potion of Water Breathing Scimitar of Wounding Tattoo of Protection
Sytarii	3,698	32,701	7 (34,000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” +2 Dagger, “Tinderstrike” ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack Gloves of Thievery Cloak of Elvenkind Boots of Elvenkind Deck of Several Things Deck of Illusions
Taban	3,698	28,658	7 (34,000)	+1 Trident, “Drown”
Telfid	3,698	31,523	7 (34,000)	Ring of Fire Resistance Gauntlets of the Ogre +2 Hammer Potion of Diminution
Aria	3,698	32,293	7 (34,000)	Skyblinder Staff Ring of Protection Wand of Magic Missiles
Noctavia	0	7,850	5 (14,000)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:

After destroying the stone golem, the party headed West where the passageway became more of a tunnel through lava rock. We were entering the fire demesne.

Turning the corner, the party saw several ogres ahead. Backing up to regroup, they hatched a dastardly plan. Reyroris lead the charge as they slew ogre after ogre (after half-ogre). With seven of the great beasts laying dead at their feet, they searched the cavern to find a stash of treasures squirreled away by the ogres.

Proceeding further east, Sytarii took point as they passed some ominous looking dwarf statues. Unfortunately, distracted by the statues, he did not see the tripwire before stepping through it, only to receive a stone axe blow as the statue on the left hurled its blade forward. Noticing that one of the statues was askew, the party investigated. There efforts were rewarded when they found a secret chamber…a tomb for a pair of long dead dwarven heroes. Raiding the tomb for its valuables, the adventurers stole away with some minor trinkets and two gem-encrusted golden funeral masks worth thousands. Ganus rightly figured that these would not be as easy to cash in as much of there treasure was.

After the racket caused by the tripwire trap, a hobgoblin patrol came by to investigate. A few seconds later, the party headed toward a large intersection where they were met by two ominous looking fiery fellows. These Razerblast turned out to be surprisingly hard to kill. And when they did die, they exploded, sending shrapnel everywhere. If Aria hadn’t magically held one of them, the outcome might not have been so certain. But she did, so Reyroris took him apart while the rest of the party dealt with the one who escaped Aria’s charm.

Having exhausted themselves fighting the ogres and razerblasts, Ganus pitched his magical tent and the party rested. Several hours later, some ogres came by and started bashing the tiny hut with their clubs. This brought the attention of another razerblast and not one, but two squads of hobgoblins. Seeing their foes, the party planned their attack.

In executing their plan, the party took some damage, and Aria was knocked out, our intrepid adventurers prevailed. Taking a short rest in the dwarven tomb, they healed and restored themselves.

Venturing east, they found empty caves. Hoping to find something more interesting, they returned to the big intersection and headed south. They slew a hapless pair of ogres that came around the corner, then proceeded to investigate a passage lined with doors on the north’s and south.

In the first unlocked cell, they found a Flame Guardian cultist and started a fight. Within seconds the guardian fell dead, and the cell door behind them opened and the hall filled with flame as a Flamewrath stepped forth. Another guardian and a second flamewrath joined the fight, the latter throwing fireball after fireball, only to have each rudely countered by Ganus magic. The second flamewrath fell just before it could cast one last fireball.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	3,858	26,064	7 (34,000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Hat of Wizardry Ruby Ring (600gp) Scroll of Earth Tremor
Fenvalur Reyroris	3,858	27,493	7 (34,000)	Ruby Ring (250 gp) +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Weird Tank (Empty) Potion of Water Breathing
Sytarii	3,858	24,451	7 (34,000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack Potion of Greater Healing
Taban	3,858	23,000	7 (34,000)	Drown (+1 Trident and more) Bead of Nourishment Potion of Fire Resistance
Telfid	3,858	25,233	7 (34,000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration Ring of Fire Resistance
Aria	3,320	24,043	7 (34,000)	Skyblinder Staff
Keeley	0	6,501	5 (14,000)	N/A
Noctavia	1,740	7,850	5 (14,000)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  Claws of the Umberhulk 2 Dwarven Funerary Masks/

After dispatching the cultists in the dining room and kitchen, the party explored further into the Temple of the Black Earth.

The passage west from the dining room led to a set of double-doors. Sytarii snuck through them and immediately backed out of the room after seeing the petrified statues of adventurers scattered throughout the cavernous room. Reyroris took point and headed in to face whatever was in there. At first it seemed to be an empty cave. Then Reyroris was hit hard as a shadow flitted past. Telffid and Ganus shed some light on the situation and the party found themselves squaring off against a shadow demon. They fought hard and banished it back to the nine hells before it could do any more damage.

In a bedroom behind the cave, they enjoyed a sumptuous bed and found much treasure.

Exiting the cave they headed south, where they came upon the cultists’ apartments. Barging in, they slew two cultists brushing their teeth. Then they proceeded to slaughter several more cultists, their guard and Dynath, the burrowshark, but not before this lasts could summon his pet bulette. Arriving on the scene just after his master fell, the bulette bit into Reyroris before being slain itself.

Heading south from the apartments, the party entered the laboratory of one Miraj Vizann, a self-proclaimed mud sorcerer. After a brief dialog, Telfid surprised the sorcerer with a silence spell, pretty much ending him as a threat. Reyroris and Sytarii leapt at the sorcerer, flanking and slaying him as he gestured furiously at his stone golem to act. It did. But the party laid a hurt on it pretty quickly, slaying it in Exless than a minute.

Heading further south, the party found two more bulettes chained and sleeping lightly. After discussing what to do with them, they awoke in a foul mood and tried to break their chains in an effort to get at the party. Aria cast spike growth to keep them from moving much, but this just angered them. One broke loose and leapt forward, landing on Taban and nearly crushing several of the others. Reacting quickly, the party slew that bulette as the other broke free. This time, the party avoided the great creatures leap and butchered it before it could cause any trouble.

After nearly falling to their doom crossing a narrow bridge over a deep chasm, the party found themselves in familiar territory where they came upon the body of the ettin they slew on their first foray into the earth temple.

After finding several abandoned rooms, including the forge where they found a set of Claws of the Umberhulk, the party encountered an earth elemental myrmidon. Like a rock golem in plate armor, the thing fought hard but was slain like the rest.

In another abandoned chamber, behind the corpse of a dead gnome, the party dispatched a black pudding.

They finished clearing the temple of the Black earth by destroying another stone golem in the northwest corner of the temple complex.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	4,383	22,206	6 (23,000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Hat of Wizardry Ruby Ring (600gp) Scroll of Earth Tremor
Fenvalur Reyroris	4,383	23,635	7 (34,000)	Ruby Ring (250 gp) +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Weird Tank (Empty) Potion of Water Breathing
Sytarii	4,383	20,593	6 (23,000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack Potion of Greater Healing
Taban	4,383	21,409	6 (23,000)	Drown (+1 Trident and more) Bead of Nourishment Potion of Fire Resistance
Telfid	4,383	21,375	6 (23,000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration Ring of Fire Resistance
Aria	4,383	20,723	6 (23,000)	Skyblinder Staff
Keeley	0	6,501	5 (14,000)	N/A
Noctavia	1,740	7,850	5 (14,000)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  Claws of the Umberhulk

Venturing down the long, winding stone staircase, the party squeezed through a narrow passage to find themselves on the edge of a chasm. As they crossed the stone bridge, they were attacked by 5 gargoyles. After smashing the gargoyles to bits, they strode through the entrance chamber to this portion of the ancient dwarven temple, and immediately came under fire from both sides as their foe launched volley after volley of crossbow bolts from the murder holes to the east and west.

Led by a burrowshark mounted on a bulette, a small band of hobgoblins threatened from the south, a team of 5 duergar were shooting from the east and a stonemelder and her guards were shooting spells and bolts from the west.

The hobgoblins were dispatched in short order by Aria’s flaming sphere. The bulette leaped into action, squishing poor Taban under its massive bulk. A fireball to the east from Ganus took care of the duergar. Yarsha, the stonemelder to the west, cast erupting earth and caused quite a bit of damage to the party and the ground. Spells were flying everywhere as Ganus, Aria, Noctavia and Yarsha pulled out the heavy hitters. Friends dropped, foes were vanquished and eventually, the party emerged victorious. Battered, bleeding and exhausted, but victorious.

Ganus pitched a magical tent for the party to rest in. Eight hours later, refreshed and restocked, Noctavia led the charge as she opened up a hole in the west wall, completely catching Yarsha and her guards flat-footed.

After defeating Yarsha, Sytarii snuck into a mess hall where the party launched a co-ordinated attack that just destroyed a pair of black earth guards and a handful of cultists.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	1,740	17,823	6 (23,000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Hat of Wizardry Ruby Ring (600gp) Scroll of Earth Tremor
Fenvalur Reyroris	1,740	19,252	6 (23,000)	Ruby Ring (250 gp) +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Weird Tank (Empty) Potion of Water Breathing
Sytarii	1,740	16,210	6 (23,000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack Potion of Greater Healing
Taban	1,740	17,026	6 (23,000)	Drown (+1 Trident and more) Bead of Nourishment Potion of Fire Resistance
Telfid	0	16,992	6 (23,000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration Ring of Fire Resistance
Aria	1,740	16,340	6 (23,000)	Skyblinder Staff
Keeley	0	6,501	5 (14,000)	N/A
Noctavia	1,740	7,850	5 (14,000)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  None

After helping the Bargewright Inn, the party decided to revisit the Sacred Stone Monastery.  Upon arrival, they discovered that security was a little tighter than their last visit.  The kitchen staff was accompanied by armed guards, and the patrol around the monastery was on alert.  So alert that the patrol ended up chasing after Telfid, into a waiting ambush where the patrol was cut down before it could even raise an alarm. 

Deciding to solicit help from the lich, Renwick, Ganus and Sytarii snuck through the garden entrance to the monastery.  Sytarii handily unlocked the wizard-locked door to the lich’s demesne.  Ganus stepped in and started lying to the lich, which he didn’t appreciate, and told Ganus to leave.  Not having much choice, Ganus left and headed for the exit, only to get attacked by a pair of Gargoyles that had come to investigate.  Splashy and Bubbles were quite helpful in smashing the monsters to bits.

Later, inside the monastery, the party spread out while the cooks started to serve breakfast.  When all were gathered into the dining hall, and diving into a plate of kippers and toast, Ganus stepped into the hall and unleashed a fireball in the center of the room, immediately annihilating most of the monks.  Hellenrae started barking orders to the survivors, sending her guards after Ganus, where they ran into Aria and her thornwhip, which dragged them through the spike growth she had laid as a trap.  They perished as the thorns and spikes did their job.

From the northeast entrance to the dining hall, Reyroris started shooting Hellenrae, who immediately charged to confront him.  Telfid shot her in the back, ending her charge.  Meanwhile, Taban and Sytarii came in from the south entrance and started shooting and hacking the survivors until all lay quiet.  

And in less than 30 seconds, most of the population of the monastery was eliminated.  Most, but not all, the party started clearing the rooms and when they came to the main foyer, squared off against a pair of minotaurs.  

Deciding to go down the winding staircase this time, the party came across an ogre and three orogs.  Dispatching them in short order, they found a collection of keys, which Ganus pocketed.  Exploring to the north, they found an old crypt where Telfid destroyed three zombies.  Ganus’ sharp eyes noticed a gleam as the light glinted off a pair of rings one of the skeletal remains in the back of the room.

Further investigation to the northwest had the party battling a caged, blinded, crippled umber hulk that raged inside the cage, which amazingly, held firm while the party put the creature out of its misery.

Exploring to the south, the party came across some cells filled with starving, tortured, injured and sick slaves/prisoners.  After learning that the orogs made them mine the caverns, but not for anything precious.  No one knew why they mined.  Sytarii unlocked the cells and the party freed the people.  One old man with an especially gnarled, but well polished, walking stick, said to Aria, “Here miss, switch with me, I think it will serve you well where you are going,” and handed her his staff in exchange for hers.

To the west, the party found a long staircase leading down from the mines.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	2,400	16,083	6 (23,000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Hat of Wizardry Ruby Ring (600gp)
Fenvalur Reyroris	2,400	17,512	6 (23,000)	Ruby Ring (250 gp) +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Weird Tank (Empty)
Sytarii	2,400	14,470	6 (23,000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack
Taban	2,400	15,286	6 (23,000)	Drown (+1 Trident and more – see below) Bead of Nourishment Potion of Fire Resistance
Telfid	2,400	16,992	6 (23,000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration Ring of Fire Resistance
Aria	2,400	14,600	6 (23,000)	Skyblinder Staff
Keeley	0	6,501	5 (14,000)	N/A
Noctavia	0	6110	4 (6500)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  None

After returning once again to the keep, where they discovered that their guests had moved on, the adventurers were attacked by a cluster of piercers.  The armor and dexterity of the party members allowed them to avoid most of the living stalactites, who turned out to be very easy to deal with as they moved agonizingly slowly and had no limbs with which to attack.  Whiff!

After clearing the decks of these pests, the party investigated the southern beach.  They found a set of nine drowning pits and were ambushed by a horde of ghouls.  The ghouls acted scarily and made ineffectual moaning and groaning noises, but didn’t actually hit anyone as they were burned, sliced, stabbed and smashed.  Whiff!

A short investigation yielded no treasure, so the party moved on.  A fog had arisen on the western beach, and there were shadows moving in it.  Aria cleared some of the fog only to come face to face with bugbears and reavers who had set up an ambush, but alas, did not surprise anyone.  The one-eyed shiver that leads the gang was able to cast several spells before his demise, with his Thunderwaves doing considerable damage.  Otherwise, the reavers and bugbears were able to act menacingly and cause the party to bring some heat, but really, they were largely ineffectual too.  Whiff!

Using the key they had found on the shiver, the party unlocked the iron gate to the west, and Sytarii and Reyroris took the opportunity for Sytarii to practice his lock-picking skills.

Then they started exploring the rooms to the northwest, first finding the bugbears filthy lair, then the shiver’s alchemical lab with a disassembled Water Weird tank.  Ganus was able to successfully reassemble the tank… it remains to be seen if it will actually hold a Water Weird tank.  Still grumbling about his misfortune in the brewery, Reyroris was somewhat appeased now that he had a Water Weird backpack, albeit an empty one.

Heading back to the Sea Hag’s area of the temple, the party went north.  There they found an abandoned, smoky, smelly kitchen.  And the gong.  Sytarii really wanted to bang the gong and face the ginormous dragon turtle, but the party talked him out of it and continued on.  Phew.

This lead them to bridge over the canal that ended at a large pair of stone doors.  Ganus spider-sense tingled and he searched for magical traps.  He was rewarded with the discovery of a Glyph of Warding, which Aria promptly dispelled.  Whiff!

After an elaborate foray into the chamber, Reyroris returned to warn the party that there were lizardfolk and a dangerous looking priest by an altar inside.  The party formed a battle plan and went in.  Executing their plan with efficiency, they moved into position, only to get half drowned in a tidal wave and pelted with an ice storm.  A difficult battle ensued.  With the arrival of two Crushing Wave Priests who quickly eliminated the magic user, Aria.  With her spike growth dispelled, the lizardfolk were free to engage in melee.  As were Reyroris, Telfid, and Taban. With spells raging around them, they battled the lizardfolk while Sytarii, Ganus and the unconscious (but stable) Aria were in the rear.  Sytarii used Ildon’s crossbow to great effect and then ran in, only to be felled by a lizardman.  Ganus put one of the now wounded priests to sleep, while the other faced off with Reyroris, who, ignoring the danger in front of him, cast his last spell and lobbed it at the head priest.  This last-ditch effort was sufficient to kill the priest, who turned into a puddle and drained away, leaving behind a very nice trident.  

Sytarii ventured a little further, through the open door the priests had entered by, finding their clean and organized bedchamber, but little else.  Ganus, not wanting to get his robes wet, sent Splashy into the canal looking for interesting things.  Sytarii followed suit and sent Bubbles the other way.  Bubbles found nothing of interest, but Splashy found an underwater tunnel that led to a grotto.  To heck with his robes, Ganus jumped in and had Splashy pull him through the tunnel to the grotto where he found a small hoard of treasure, including some coins, scrolls and the missing dwarvish library.

Out of spells, hurt and tired, the party settled in for a long rest to recover.  Alas, it wasn’t meant to be.  Their sleep was troubled by fitful dreams of the water cult and a Destruction Orb heading for Womford.  The nightmares continue as the cultists explode the orb, causing torrential rain and a devastating flood that drowns or washes away the livestock and the citizens, and destroys many of the buildings.  Even the Bargewright Inn is affected, suffering significant damage and losses in the flood.  Nightmare visions of the Flying Hippogriff and many other boats being tossed to and fro as the river roils and rages through the docks harry their sleep. With clear images of lifeless bodies being washed into the river, the party awakens, not at all refreshed.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	2080	11458	5 (14000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack Scroll of Tidalwave Scroll of Vitriolic Sphere
Fenvalur Reyroris	2080	12887	5 (14000)	250 GP gold ruby ring +1 Longsword Potion of Giant Strength Weird Tank (Empty)
Sytarii	2080	12070	5 14000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack
Taban	2080	10661	5 (14000)	Drown (+1 Trident and more – see below)
Telfid	2080	12367	5 (14000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration Potion of Fire Resistance
Keeley	0	6501	5 (14000)	N/A
Aria	2080	12200	5 (14000)	N/A
Noctavia	0	6110	4 (6500)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  Library of Dwarvish Tomes

Drown

A steel trident decorated with bronze barnacles along the upper part of its haft, Drown has a sea-green jewel just below the tines and a silver shell at the end of its haft. It floats on the surface if dropped onto water, and it floats in place if it is released underwater. The trident is always cool to the touch, and it is immune to any damage due to exposure to water. Drown contains a spark of Olhydra, the Princess of Evil Water.

You gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls you make with this magic weapon. When you hit with it, the targets takes an extra 1d8 cold damage.

Water Mastery. You gain the following benefits while you hold Drown:

• You can speak Aquan fluently.
• You have resistance to cold damage.
• You can cast dominate monster (save DC 17) on a Water Elemental. Once you have done so, Drown can’t be used this way again until the next dawn.

Tears of Endless Anguish. While inside a water node, you can perform a ritual called the Tears of Endless Anguish, using Drown to create a Devastation Orb of water (see the Devastation Orb description for the time and cost of the ritual). Once you perform the ritual, Drown can’t be used to perform the ritual again until the next dawn.

Flaw. Drown makes its wielder covetous. While attuned to the weapon, you gain the following flaw: “I demand and deserve the largest share of the spoils, and I refuse to part with anything that’s mine.” In addition, if you are attuned to Drown for 24 consecutive hours, barnacles form on your skin. The barnacles can be removed with a greater restoration spell or similar magic, but not while you are attuned to the weapon.

After healing and escorting Droth, Wulgreda, and Gurvor to the boat and giving them instructions for their return to Rivergard Keep, the party decided to cross the bridge onto the central island of the water temple. 

Their first encounter was with a band of the Blackmaw lizardfolk and their leader, Tornscale.  The lizardfolk reinforcements attacked in waves, but Aria’s spike growth slowed them down while Ganus flaming sphere took a heavy toll. 

A loud gong was heard to the north and the party soon discovered that a ginormous dragon turtle had hauled itself out of the water in answer to the Blackmaw’s call.  Not wanting to tangle with the beast, the party turned back into the lizardfolk’s den.

As the last of the Blackmaw was dispatched, a massive ogre cut off the party’s exit.  This ogre was soon accompanied by another and a woman who’s ugliness defied description. After the first ogre died and the second took some damage, the woman and the ogre left in a hurry.  

Not wanting to leave well enough alone, the party chased the hag and her bodyguard into her lair.  Taking down the second Ogre put the wind in their sails, and Reyroris charged in, got one good look at the hag’s true form and fell unconscious.  Sytarii dragged him to safety and administered a healing potion, then used his new wand of winter to cast sleet storm on the hag.  While she was slipping, sliding and falling down a lot, Reyroris and Sytarii took pot shots at her, then Telfid marched in and slew the hag in short order, being immune to her death stare.  The hag turned out to have a magic longsword and two potions squirreled away in her alcove.  

Deciding to turn left, the party crossed the next bridge, whereupon a troll challenged their crossing, resulting in a dead troll as fire and magic destroyed it very quickly.  

Across the bridge, the party entered an ancient brewery where they found three large glass jar backpacks and some large copper tanks.  Putting on a backpack, Ganus felt a presence asking him to release it from one of the tanks.  Opening a copper tank, he was surprised to see a water tentacle emerge menacingly.  Slamming the lid closed, he wondered about the backpacks. 

Trying one on, he felt a presence asking him to open a tank and free it from its prison.  So he opened the second tank, whereupon an angry Water Weird tried to drown him and drag him into the tank with it.    Reyroris, armed with his new magic longsword, and Sytarii, armed with Reszur, came to the rescue, slaying the water weird and freeing the now soaked Ganus.  Unperturbed, Ganus opened the third tank where an excited Water Weird jumped out and into his backpack.  Ganus felt the thing’s gratitude as it settled into the backpack.  Sytarii followed Ganus’ lead, slinging the second backpack over his shoulder and opening the first tank.  This water weird was also happy to be freed and leaped into the backpack.  Reyroris was now kicking himself for killing what was likely to have been a third water weird.  Sytarii named the creature in his backpack and his mind, Bubbles, while Ganus named his, Splashy.  Reyroris continued grumbling about his misfortune.

Again choosing to go left, the party got to a beach with several old broken skiffs lying about.  As they proceeded to assemble and repair one skiff from the many, a large Octopus emerged from the water and started attacking the would-be shipwrights.  Ganus and Sytarii quickly put their water weirds to work and the poor Octopus didn’t stand a chance.  The party then finished their work on the boat undisturbed.  Reyroris, jealous and frustrated, continued to pine over the lost opportunity.

Alas, our tale pauses here, to be continued next week.

Character	XP	XP So Far	Level (To Advance)	Treasure
Ildon Ganus	1620	9378	5 (14000)	Wand of Magic Missiles (attuned) Scroll of Haste Scroll of Wall of Water Scroll of Skywrite ‘Splashy’ the Water Weird and BackPack
Fenvalur Reyroris	1620	10807	5 (14000)	250 GP gold ruby ring +1 Longsword
Sytarii	1620	9990	5 (14000)	+1 Dagger, “Reszur” Potion of Diminution Wand of Winter ‘Bubbles’ the Water Weird and BackPack
Taban	0	6501	5 (14000)	N/A
Telfid	1620	10287	5 (14000)	Scroll of Lesser Restoration
Keeley	0	6501	5 (14000)	N/A
Aria	1620	8120	5 (14000)	N/A
Noctavia	0	6110	4 (6500)	N/A
Nastane	0	3942	4 (6500)	N/A
Nala	0	4942	4 (6500)	N/A
Unassigned Treasure:  Potion of Fire Resistance, Potion of Hill Giant Strength