The D&D Dynasty: The Path of Alzar the Mighty

[Abe Sargent]

They continue around a large tunnel and arrive at an old storeroom. They enter an anteroom with 5 bugbears as guards, wearing capes of crimson, and wielding morning stars. After seeing the undead foes, they retreat behind a door. Alzar’s group follows and arrives in a big room. There are 7 bug bears and many doors to various areas. This is obviously the central living area of a group of people on this level. There is a mantlet here and behind them are two of the bugbears that start firing bows. Coming out of the rooms are humans that look like clerics and fighters.

A Sleep spell drops just two bugbears. Entering the room is a human level 3/3 cleric and fighter, human curate level 5 cleric, and human prefect level 6 cleric and human commander level 7 fighter.

Battle ensues. Alzar orders animal skeletons in and around the field, to trip people up and keep them from retreating. He orders the zombies in as cannon fodder right behind the animal skeletons, with the ghouls and skeletons to flank on each side and move in.

Alzar wins init and casts Dire Charm on the fighter/commander and…he fails his save after the minuses Alzar provides. He turns and starts attacking a nearby bugbear behind the mantlet. He gets in a free hit and deals 4 damage to it. One cleric casts Hold Person just on Alzar for the -4 save bonus, but it fails. Another controls 3 skeletons and a third controls 5 zombies. Carum slings a stone at a cleric for 5 damage. Dryshik also Mist Balls it but she makes the save. Est misses. The orc archers are firing at bugbears and miss 5 times. Alzar is attacked a few times and is missed.

The next round, Alzar and group win init. He draws his axe and moves towards the prefect cleric. Est misses, Carum hits again on the curate for 4 damage. Two archers hit a bugbear in front for 4 damage. The charmed fighter misses, and then attacks a second time for 8 damage to the bugbear. The bugbears turn and attack the commander and one drops its weapon and the other hits for 3 damage on the commander. The bugbears miss after closing with Alzar. More undead are controlled and they kill a zombie. The undead are fully in and can attack next round.

Alzar hews into the prefect for 18 damage. The commander this and kills a bugbear for 9 damage. The archers hit once for 6 damage on a bugbear. Carum and Est have moved in and dropped their missile weapons. Next turn they can attack the curate. Wassilon joins them. The undead kill two bugbears completely and are blocked by other undead controlled by the clerics. More undead join two of them and the wounded Prefect casts Cure Light Wounds. Alzar takes 9 from two bugbears.

42/56 – Alzar HP

More undead are controlled and they kill 4 skeletons and a ghoul. The Prefect casts another Cure Light Wounds. The bugbears miss. Alzar hits twice for 35 damage and the Prefect is dead. Est hacks at a Bugbear for 6 damage and it takes enough from undead to die. The commander misses the bugbear he is attacking. Carum spears it for 6. The archers hit the Curate twice for 4 damage. Wassilon misses. They win init and Alzar kills the last bugbear. The commander moves to the curate and hits for 4 damage. The curate falls to Wassilon and the final cleric/fighter moves to retreat but can’t for all of the animal skeletons behind him. He orders his undead to attack and they kill 4 animal skeletons. He is killed by missiles and undead. The commander is subdued and captured.

They search the bodies, this room and the complex and find:

185 gp
Large Violet Garnet – 700 gp
Gold Fire Amulet – 100 gpx4
50 pp
Potion of Poison
Ring
Ruby – 1000 gp
Tapestry with Gold and Silver Thread – 2000 gp
Robe of Deep Crimson set with Gold Fire Symbol and small rubies – 2500 gp
Scroll of Cleric Spells
Various weapons and armor
Sardonyx Copper Box – 150 gp
Rare herbs – 200 gp
Scroll of Protection from Devils
Red Silk Robe with Fire Symbols and many garnets – 3000 gp
Jeweled Ring – 500 gp
Tome – The Anatomy of the Harginn (The Fire Elemental Grue) worth 500 gp and tell how to summon, and what they do, etc.

The commander had:

+1 flametongue sword
+1 banded Armor
Robe
Gold Garnet Studded Chain - 750 gp
Gems x 19 – 10 gp each


Alzar has the commander tied up, gagged, and locked in a room.

[Abe Sargent]

They head back to the corridor and move forward instead of right. They enter a pearlescent room with white marble floor and alabaster. A light says this is a place of rest for those of good alignment to find respite and regain strength against the temple. Leave your weapons here in order to be temporarily blessed to fight against the evil. Alzar knows it is a trick since any such place would quickly see him, his undead and orcs as evil. He leaves the room through another door. They find a room with two werewolves and a giant crystal that communicates with the room they were just in. They both see the large force Alzar has assembled and surrender. He has them bound and gagged both in the mouth and wrapped around it. He used harsh wire, so that if they try and change shape, it will cut off their hands and feet from the tightness.

They search and find:

18 sprigs of wolfsbane
+1 dagger
+1 short sword +3 vs lycanthropes and shapechangers
5 silver daggers
Scroll of Protection against Lycanthropes
1600 sp
Tons of weapons and armor for the magic pile

They leave through another door that ends at giant double doors of bronze, which are forced open to reveal a huge octagonal room. There is a pit on the floor, and above it a stone of alabaster. There are two knives and a crystal bowl of high quality. There are several door out, including another set of the magically sealed ones. Alzar has a zombie approach the crystal and alabaster area and as it gets close, and touches the crystal dais, a fierce wind rushes from the pit and destroys the zombie. A tinking and chiming alert is sounded, and out from a secret door comes a creature that looks like a Wraith, but Alzar cannot control it.




Alzar doesn’t think it’s undead. He throws his dagger at it and it takes 11 damage. Alzar orders others to fire, but the non-magical missiles fly right through it. Carum hits for 5. Alzar steps in front to challenge it, and it arrives. It misses Alzar then takes nothing as he drops his axe. Est’s sword hits for 11 damage. It dies.

XP – 650 for Carum, Alzar and Estaish

They move to its secret chamber and it is a small one with a Censer in it.

Alzar orders everyone out of the chamber and grabs the Ring of Telekinesis and floats the crystal items over:

Evil Items – Crystal knivesx2, Crystal Bowl - 250 gp for bowl, 1250 gp for each knife

Alzar also takes two giant crystal braziers that are not protected by the wind, and they are each worth 10,000 gp. Undead carry them.

[Abe Sargent]

They leave and arrive in a corridor. They push forward and arrive in the temple of fire.

This huge hall of red granite lit by scores of flambeaux and the odor of sulfur and heated metal. There are tapestries along the far wall, several other doors in, and a brass tube suspended from the ceiling. To the left of it in a shallow fire pit and to either side of the long tube are low stands of brass open with are charcoal. There are flanks of copper pillars and cauldrons. Alzar puts on the Fire Amulet and Robe from the dead clerics and moves in by himself (remembering how this worked above). He also puts on the Ring of Fire Resistance.

There is a glowing amber liquid in the pots and a translucent block of golden apatite in the center. There are figures moving in the fire. They writhe in there and are not doing anything else. There is nothing on the altar, unlike the earth temple. Alzar risks touching the altar, and it shrieks out “Who Dares Defile the Sacred Elemental Fire?” The figures in the fire pit begin to grow. Alzar grabs water and tries to douse the pit, to no avail. After a round, they are growing more and Alzar orders Carum and Estaish in. He pulls out and tosses Wave to Carum, since the trident would be happy to fight creatures of fire. Alzar tries to control the fire creatures, but they are too powerful.

As they get bigger, Alzar can tell they are Fire Salamanders – 4 of them. His axe is just +0 against the chaotic evil guys and he hits for 11 damage on one as it gets big. Est hits for 4 and Carum hits with Wave for 8 damage. Next round they are done growing and battle ensues. They have wicked tridents. Alzar, Carum and Est are immune to the salamander fire aura due to Fire Protection magic. Alzar wins init and hews the salamander for 11 damage. Est misses. Carum crits it with wave for 18 damage and it dies. Two miss Alzar, a third misses Carum. Est, Carum and Alzar all get a second attack now. All three hit for 22 damage. The salamanders win init and hit Est once for 7 damage. Everybody hits for 32 and the salamander already wounded dies. The salamanders win init again and hit Carum for 6 damage. Alzar Est and Carum swing and hit three times for 31 damage. They attack again and Est misses and Carum and Alzar deal 21 and kill it. One left. It wins init and misses. It takes 24 damage. They finally win init and kill it.

Est – 39/50
Carum - 55/64

XP – 2667 for Carum, Est and Alzar

They search the area. Alzar reaches down with his hands and checks the fire pit. There is something way down there, and he is not burned, but will be if he keeps his hands there. He has undead retrieve a pair of wine casks from an earlier room and they drop them over the fire pit and it is put out, but smoldering and getting hotter again. Alzar has a zombie reach down, and a trap triggers and cuts off its hand. It can still fight fine without it, though. Alzar sees the mechanism and Acids it and it is destroyed. Another zombie retrieves a chest and it is locked. Neither Alzar nor the thief can pick the lock, so he Acid’s it and opens it.

2 Potions
Ring of Fire Resistance
Longsword

They pry the gold decoration from the altar:

Gold Fire Altar Decoration – 500 gp

[Abe Sargent]

They leave and find the doors head back to the are the fire priests were in. They head back and go another way from the corridor and arrive at a huge hall with buttress and arches but a veneer of verdigris over everything. There are doors out in other areas, and statues and such all in here, plus a fountain and altar. Alzar has a zombie go out and investigate, and suddenly, the four statues in the corner animate as gargoyles and attack. There is a large juggernaut that also animates and crushes the zombie. Alzar feels a prick though and senses not all is as it seems. Trusting his judgment, he raises his hands and tries to command the room, and the gargoyles are now under his control. He has them retreat and moves his forces to deal with the juggernaut golem. Alzar, Carum and Estaish move in.

As they do, noise from a hallway reveals several people arriving in the room. A trio of priests wearing dark green arrive behind the juggernaut. Seeing new foes, Alzar tries to Sleep them with his spell from the Ring of Spell Storing. One under-priest falls asleep. Alzar is successfully Commanded to run and he does. Carum fails a save and is now paralyzed from a Hold Person. Est moves in front of the closing juggernaut to keep it from Carum. He crits it for 10 damage. It hits him once out of four attacks for 7 damage. Wassilon orders the archers to fire and arrows fail to damage the golem –which needs magic weapons to hit it. One cleric casts Hold Person at Estaish and he makes his save. The other tries to slap awake the sleeping one.

32/50 – Estaish

Alzar spends this round running back. He orders Dryshik to Mist Ball the cleric that cast two Hold Persons. Est takes 12 from two hits out of four from the juggernaut. The cleric finishes awakening the sleeping one and she will be ready to do stuff again next turn. The head cleric casts Light at Estaish’s eyes. It works and he is blinded for 6 rounds. Estaish swings at the juggernaut twice and one managed to hit it for 7 damage. Arrows fly at the clerics and miss. The Mist Ball is shrugged off.

20/50


The juggernaut has moved forward and rolls over Carum dealing 37 damage to him. The head cleric tries to Darkness over Alzar’s eyes and fails. The other two clerics control some zombies and skeletons from the door. Alzar’s axe hacks into the juggernaut for 14 damage. Est misses it and drops his sword. Arrows fly out and the lead cleric takes 3.

18/64 – Carum

Alzar moves in front of the juggernaut and swings for 12 damage. Arrows miss. Dryshik Mist Balls and the head priest takes 3 damage and is blinded for 2 rounds The juggernaut attacks Alzar and misses. The minor clerics attack and kill a few animal skeletons with their controlled undead. The blinded cleric tries to retreat. Alzar orders Megala to fly in and it misses the scratch. Est misses. Alzar’s second attack adds 16.

They win init and Alzar adds 19 and the golem dies. Megala scratches the lead priest as he flees for 1 damage and he sleeps. The other two control more undead. Est runs up to one. The next round, they win and try to flee. Est slices one for 7 damage. Alzar throws a dagger and hits the wounded one for 10 damage. She dies. The other is escaping. Megala and Dryshik give chase down a corridor and a Mist Ball flies out and he makes his save. Alzar chases and with his boots is very fast and catches up, jumping in front of the fleeing cleric, who panics and draws his feeble mace. Alzar carves for 13, he misses. Alzar carves for 17 and he is dead.

XP – 500 for Wassilon
XP – 2250 for Alzar and Estaish

They search the bodies and this room and the next two rooms and find:

Plate Mail +1
Four Gargoyle Cloaks on four zombies
Gold Ring with Tentacles in peridot – 750 gpx2
Malachite Dinner Service – 2000 gp as a set
Cleric Scroll
Four texts on Elemental Water, Evil – 250 gp each
Green Pearl Ring – 570 gp
Potion
Rod of Smiting – 14 charges left
Ring
Robe of Green Velvet with Gold Trim and Gems and Creature of Ten Tentacles– 7150 gp
Iron Key with word D’Lyss on it.
Gold Ring with Peridot Bezel – 1000 gp
Ivory Tray – 50 gp
32 gold dishes – 1900 gp for the set
Seven Tomes on Secret Rituals of Water Evil of various sorts.

Locked chest when opened with key has:

Coral Box – 100 gp
100 tiny seed pearls – 10 gp each
Cloak
Trident
Aquamarine – 5000 gp
Scroll of Cleric Spells

Carum quaffs a healing potion to get him to 26/64

-1 healing potion


The gargoyles are actually zombies wearing a Gargoyle cloak that turns them into a gargoyle while being worn, including gargoyle strengths, AC, hip and everything – but with a core undead essence still. Alzar orders them to the sides and will use them as a hit force if he needs to.

[Abe Sargent]

They enter a room with a large pool. It has a lapis lazuli basin and a crystal dome above. Alzar sends in a zombie and nothing happens. He has the zombie move around – nothing. He has it reach into the pool and some of its fingers dissolve. Acid. Alzar moves in and is suddenly telepathically contacts and attempted to be mentally dominated by some force in here that wants him to jump in the acid. He easily avoids the magical Suggestion and moves in just himself. After investigation, it appears the pool itself is alive, and Alzar tries to wound it, but his Axe and various blades fail. Without a way of damaging it, and with an investigation that shows nothing else in here, not even in the shiny pool, he leaves.

A different route than one taken before finds a mated pair of owlbears in an abandoned store-room. The undead kill them and three zombies died. They continue and find a door with a troll chief as the honored guest of the temple in the room. Ohlgrist sees the large number of troops Alzar has and immediately sits down instead of attacking. He speaks halting Typic and tells them to go away, great war chief will spare them. That ploy fails and Alzar moves in. He offers to give his necklace of rubies. Alzar asks what he was doing here and he said that each of the four factions of the temple wanted him to bring his tribe of 20 trolls to their side, and he was brought here, treated well, and given gifts in order to entice him. He preferred to play them off each other rather than make a decision.

Alzar agrees to spare the troll chief’s life and let him go, if the chief agrees to have his tribe serve him instead. They can kill and such, but can only raid who he tells them too, and when he needs them, they come. In thanks, Alzar pulls out the Ruby – 1000 gp he raided earlier. He will give the Troll this ruby, and promise more goods later.

The troll agrees, and Alzar and group escort him out. Alzar determines that the ESP spell shows he is telling the truth and Oohlgrist will keep his bargain.

-1 ruby 1000 gold

[Abe Sargent]

They continue and find a room with 4 bugbears, easily killed by undead. Their killing alerts more bugbears and the complex is alerted and many tougher looking ones, plus a couple of ogres and gnolls, move in.

A dagger flies out and deals 9 to a bugbear. Est adds 2, Carum adds 6 and it dies. Orcish archers hit four times on one bugbear for 16 damage and she dies. Wassilon moves in behind Alzar. Undead are already in places. Three bugbears are killed by undead. They kill two skeletons. Alzar orders the gargoyles and ghouls to head to another hallway into this area and guard it in case bugbear’s flee. At the end of the round, a cleric has arrive.

They go first. 2 skeletons die. The priest casts Cause Blindness on Alzar and it works, and he is blinded. Without missing a step, he axes a bugbear for death. Wassilon hits for 3, Est crits for 12 and Carum spears for 6 and kills a bugbear. Arrows fly out and drop a gnoll. The ogres are ordering everybody away while they move in. A Mist Ball at the priest fails. The undead kill two bugbears and the last gnoll. Alzar wins init the next round. He hews into an ogre for 15 damage as the axe does +0 right now. Est drops his sword and Carum spears the ogre for 8 damage. It misses Alzar. Another kills a zombie. The priest casts Silence at Alzar, and he is silenced. He axes the ogre again for 16 damage. Carum adds nothing as he misses, and Est recovers. Arrows fly in and hit the ogre for 4 and he dies. Undead kill the last two bugbears. The priest starts to run.

A mist ball flies in and the priest fails the save and takes 5 damage and is blinded for 3 rounds. The final ogre misses. Alzar hits for 13, Est adds 6 and Carum 10. Wassilon misses. The ogre drops from undead attacks. Alzar orders Megala to the blind priest and he crits it for 2 damage and he failed his save and falls asleep.

XP – 350 each for Alzar, Estaish, Carum and Wassilon

They search the complex and find:

Kegs of wine
419 cp, 282 sp, 133 gp, 280 ep
4 Cloaks of Air – 100 gp each
Gold Ring – 700 gp
+1 chain mail
Cloak of Protection +1
Dagger of Venom with one dose left
Ceremonial Robe of High Cleric of Air – 1500 gp
Large numbers of weapons and armor

They move on and find a kitchen, now abandoned. They move on and enter the side of a huge hall.

This hall was once the scene of great revels in the temple. The floor is littered with skeletons, skulls and bones. There are broken chairs and such. Numerous hallways enter this room. There are stairs down.

An update on where we are right now:

15 ghouls
2 zombies
4 zombies wearing gargoyle cloaks
3 normal skeletons
20 skeletons with armor, weapons, shield and 8 hp
32 animal skeletons
6 ghasts
5 orcs with chain, shield, long sword, crossbow and 20 bolts
Megala, Dryshik
Carum, Estaish, Wassilon, Alzar

[Abe Sargent]

They continue and arrive at a prison room and kill the bugbear and ogre jailer with ease. The ogre killed a zombie. They investigate the jails and release: 2 qwith, the Countess Tillahi of Celene and Sir Juffer, 3 human merchants They are taken above and left with the others, with the Countess and Sir Juffer given weapons to help protect the rest for now. On their way back down they are attacked by a group of gnools who are killed in seconds.


1000 xp to each of the four for their rescue

They arrive back and move to a storage chamber and then garbage room. They come across an Otyugh in the garbage room.



The otyugh is attacked by undead and hacks a few animal skeletons dead with its tentacles before dying. A search finds:

Scroll of Wizard Spells – Friends, Magic Missile, Knock, Mirror Image, Web, Slow, Rary’s Mnemonic Enhancer
Gold Platter – 300 gp
Platinum Bracelet – 1000 gp
Four Opals – 1000 gp each

They move on and arrive at another complex with 20 or so bugbears total living in it. They surrender after seeing Alzar and his army approach. They have heard rumors of someone invading the temple and they want nothing to do with him and his group. Alzar agrees to leave them and their small five room complex alone if they pack up and leave the temple permanently, and they do.

They return and take a different bend and arrive at a cistern. It is very deep and slime covered, so Alzar has animal skeletons explore it and unlike he expected, there are no slime creatures down there, but they do find a slime covered object:

+2 shield

They raid some armories and add the weapons and armor to the magic pile. They find:

3 large sacks of fine garments – 500 gp each sack

[Abe Sargent]

They final corner of this level of the dungeon features a 6 room complex of brigands. Alzar breaks into a room with undead, and they envelop the low level fighters. Alzar loses several undead, including his last zombie, 2 ghouls, and 5 skeletons, but kills more than 25 humans.

They search and find (A poison trap on a chest failed to damage a skeleton)

Jet – 100 gp
Feldspar Necklace – 150 gp
Bag of Holding – Smaller – just 2000 coins worth
Silver Lamp – 120 gp
Fine Rug – 260 gp
Gold Cup, Ewer, Box – 675 as set
Jade and Silver Bracelet – 1700 gp
112 pp
74 gp
Zircons – 6x50gp
Two Potions – One is Healing
Bone Scroll case with one Wizard Spell – Pyrotechnics
Scroll of Protection from Elementals

They have finished the second level and head back, and take the stairs down from the main chamber with all of the bones.

[Abe Sargent]

They arrive at another set of sealed doors, so Alzar backtracks and takes some stairs down from a side room. They arrive in a room with five doors. As the undead move about the room, their footfalls echo, and the four doors spring open and out comes a troll from each one. Alzar pulls out the big guns and orders the gargoyles to fly up and distract one. The others retreat from the trolls that can kill. Alzar runs in towards the nearest one and they engage. He hits with his axe. (rolled that 2+4 AC, +3 axe, +2 from magic axe +3 strength is 14 which is a hit). The neutral evil troll takes 17 damage. Carum hits for 5 and Est misses. Archers fire and deal 13 to the troll in four hits. Wassilon tries to sneak behind it and succeeds. The troll focuses on Alzar and misses. The other two move in and the fourth tries to damage the gargoyles and fails. The gargies deals 8 to it.

Alzar swings and drops his axe. Est and Carum each hit for 21 and the troll dies. Arrows fly in and deal 10 to another troll, which is backstabbed for 14 by Wassilon. The gargies deal 10 to their troll. Alzar takes 11 damage, and then recovers his axe. Carum and Est swing again and Carum misses but Est adds 7 to the injured troll.

45/56

Alzar deals 19 out and kills the injured troll. Carum and Est and Wassilon hit the other for 24. Arrows hit twice for 8 more. The gargies deal 15 to their troll. The troll attacks and misses 3 times on Alzar. Alzar wins init and cleans out the last two. He grabs a flask of oil and kills them by burning their body parts and preventing regeneration.

XP – 1400 for each of the four

They search and find nothing in the rooms. Alzar moves forward and they head into the next room. They arrive in a room with a giant ettin who brandishes a giant club and then ignites it. I thought the trolls were just having some fun, but I see you’ve made it through to here. You won’t go any further.



Alzar throws a dagger at the giant and hits for 11 damage. Est misses, Carum, hits for 6 damage. He orders ahead those protected from fire, with him at the top. Orcish archers with crossbows deal 10 damage. The ettin tries to smashes Alzar, misjudges his location, and misses. Alzar slashes with his axe, now just +0. And hits for 10 damage. Carum adds 9 with his spear. Archers miss. The Ettin tries to smash Carum and rolls a 14. That’s a hit for 14 damage. Alzar orders Carum back and hacks for 12. Est adds 12. Carum retreats, throwing his spear for 8 damage and killing it.


12/64 - Carum

XP _ 1000 each to Carum, Alzar, and Estaish

They find:

157 gp
5 Azurites, 6 Hematites and 7 Tiger Eyes each worth 10 gp
Box of Carved Ivory – 100 Gp
6 pieces of Incense of Meditation

Carum quaffs another healing pot and is at 19/60

-1 healing pot

[Abe Sargent]

There are four doors here. Each of them has a set of steps behind them and a corridor that continues. Alzar chooses a direct at random and they head down it. They find a storeroom with:

Axe +1
Chain Mail +1
8 vials of holy water

They continue on and find fountain, then a bronze pit with a pit trap that kills a normal skeleton. They find stairs down. There is an Umber Hulk chained with a magical bronze chain. Alzar skips it. There is a room with a leather wand case, and inside is:

Wand of Lightning – 28 charges
Pouch – 5 pieces of jewelry worth a total of 8200 gp
Alabaster Flask – 25 gp with rare perfume worth 1400 gp
100 pp

They take a side corridor to a dead end room with sunlight coming from it. There are shapes moving in here. They appears to be giant rats and foxes. There are a variety of alcoves in here. There are two captives on the slab of rock, tied to it. Alzar senses its not right with his 19 INT and a Gem of Seeing shows illusions. The people on the slab are actually jackalweres. There are live gargoyles and 20 jackals in there as well. A skulltrap clears out the entire room.

XP – 1000 for Alzar

They search and find:

410 gp
223 ep
67 pp
6 gems worth 100 gp each
Two pieces of jewelry worth 500 gp each
Potion of Plant Control
Wizard Scroll – Spider Climb, Extension I, Levitate, Infravision

[Abe Sargent]

They continue on the original passageway and pass a room with some crazy lights, but the Gem reveals just illusions and nothing there. They arrive at a chamber of statues. There are nine in here. Beholder Blue Dragon, Fire Giant, Medusa, Manticore, mummy, guzak, ogre mage, and wight. The beholder is starting as a scroll tube in front of it. When opened it explodes and kills a skeleton. The scroll inside is destroyed.

The Blue Dragon is starting at a magical copper box that is a Flatbox.The Fire Giant is holding a huge spear. The Manticore is poised over a crossbow, missing a string. The medusa is wearing a pretty cloak. The mummy has a flask with many doses of very strong acid. The ogre mage has a silver chain. The guzak is wearing a Ring. The wight crouches before a silver urn. An undead opens it and out pours Dust of Sneezing and Choking, and it is all used up and gone.



They Find:

Flatbox
Spear
Crossbow missing string
Cloak
Acid Flask
Silver Chain with Otiluke’s Freezing Sphere Sling Stone once/day created (4d6 damage)
Ring
Platinum Urn – 20,000 gp value

[Abe Sargent]

They continue to the next room which is a dead end, earth floored area. There are numerous fungus in here, including some very large ones. As they move in, a voice shouts out to be careful, some are deadly. A lamia emerges and tries to charm them. Alzar makes it, the others fail, even the orcs. She starts to tell the others that Alzar has been affected by the mold and fungus and needs to be secured. A Mist Ball flies in and she makes her save and Alzar draws and sheathes the Sword of Lyons and disappears, then moves to pounce on her with axe, with +0 due to her CE nature.

He swings and deals 17 damage. She twists and tries to Suggestion him and fails. She wins init and just tries to stab him and misses. Alzar hits for 15 and then crits her for 21 damage and she dies just as his companions arrive to restraining him.

XP – 3000 for Alzar.

They find:

Gold Necklace – 1000 gp
Five Star Rubies – each worth 1000 gp
Bracers of Defense AC6
+1 short sword

They return and take a different direction from the room with four doors. They pass by a side corridor that ends in a circular room with nothing in here. They arrive at a triangular room with paintings of eyes and the symbol for the eye of fire on the walls. There are four doors to this room. Alzar orders his minions to open one door to the left and in here are 6 bugbears. Alzar casts Hypnotism and all but one are enthralled. A Mist Ball flies in, blinds the other one, and missiles fly in and kill him. The alarm is not raised.

XP – 250 Alzar

They move to the next room. In there are two bugbear leaders who immediately call for help. Smarter, more capable. The undead horde in and kill them. Out of the other two doors pop 4 ogres, a hill giant and a worg.

Now this is a big set of enemies.

Alzar orders everybody to stay back and conjures an Earth Elemental right behind the giant. The ogres move in. Est and Carum fire and hit an ogre for 17 damage. Orcs deal 6 more and it falls. Wassilon is trying to sneak in. Battle ensues.
 
The Earth Elemental punches the hill giant for 19 damage. It reels. Alzar’s axe hews into an ogre for 10 damage (Chaotic evil). Est and Carum run in. Wassilon fails to sneak in and makes a regular attack. He adds 3 damage. Arrows fly in for another 8 damage and the ogre falls. The worg and giant attack the elemental. The elemental takes 12. Alzar is attacked twice by ogres and missed.

They win init. The elemental takes 3 from the worg. Alzar is tridented for 9 by an ogre. He crits an ogre for 17 damage. Est and Carum add 15 and she dies. Wassilon hits the other for 3 more. The archers miss. The elemental hits for 9 on the giant. Alzar’s second attack misses (since it is just +0 right now, a 2 is a miss on AC 4). Alzar wins init. The Elemental misses. Alzar and the fighters kill the fourth ogre. Then they move in on the worg and giant. The worg hits for 5 more. The elemental punches for 28 damage and the giant dies. The worg misses. A dagger flies in for 12 damage. Carum;s spear crtis it for 13 and it dies.

42/56


XP – 1050 for each of the four

Alzar has his team search and they find:

Bloodstone Gold Ring – 50 gpx2
Electrum Amulet – 70 gp
8 silver plates – 200 gp total
Javelin +2
622 ep
Potion
2763 gp
17 gems worth 10 gp each

[Abe Sargent]

In the back they find two rooms with:

2 humans, orc, hobgoblin, three goblins, gnoll, bugbear

Alzar adds the orc to his archers. The others are too weak and are escorted back up. The goblinoids are secretly killed by Alzar’s undead and eaten by the ghouls and ghasts. The 2 humans are added above.

50 xp for each of the four

They arrive back and run into no opposition and move to another section of the level from another corridor from that room of four doors. They find a dining room with:

Gold service with 2 flagons, 2 platters, plates, salt cellar – 1550 as set
Cinnebar Serving Set – 450 gp
2 Candelabra of Rose Gold 2250 gp each

They arrive in an area with thirteen human skeletons with armor and weapons around the room. They do not animate, so Alzar decides to animate 9 of them to follow him with his Animate Dead spell. They are normal skeletons, but with armor and weapons.

The next room is a darkened one and the lair for 8 shadows, which join Alzar’s cause.

Shadows 0 AC7, can only be hit by magic, 15hp, deals 1d4 +1 damage and1 point of strength loss. Can surprise easily – 90% of time

They move into another room with 8 shadows. One is holding a rod of something and 7 more move forth. Alzar cannot control them, and orders his shadows to attack, led by himself and his fighters. A dagger crits one for 14 damage and it dies. Another dies to several of Alzar’s shadows. Est and Carum run in. Their shadows attack and kill two of Alzar’s. He orders his men to concentrate on the one holding a rod and standing back. Carum throws his spear for 10 and Alzar’s dagger adds 11 and it dies. The other are controlled now.

The Rod gives immunity to all undead within a 10’ radius to all turning, control and destruction attempts but operation requires two hands. Alzar likes it!

Undead Turning Rod Immunity 10’ Radius

In here are:

32 black pearls worth 500 gp each
Potion
Protection from Undead Scroll

[Abe Sargent]

A kitchen they search has

Crystal Decanter – 200 gp
26 crystal goblets 50 gp each

They ,move to a chamber long abandoned as it is now haunted by groaning spirit. Alzar controls her and keeps her back but cannot force her out of the room where she died. She reveals:

+1 longbow
Elven Cloak
Elven Chainmail made for female
Periapt of Proof vs Poison +3
Scroll – Gust of Wind, Tongues, Polymorph Self, Remove Curse, Airy Water, Limited Wish
4 small Ivory carvings worth 3150 gp total

They pass another set of stairs down, many empty rooms, and arrive at an alchemy workroom.

Small Pottery Flask – 1000 gp of quicksilver
2000 gp of Alchemical supplies

They move to an adjacent room and arrive in a large laboratory. There are shelves, and tables, desks, and more.

Enough magical ink for 7 scrolls to be written
Parchment and vellum necessary to do so
Ape teeth, basilisk scales, cockatrice feathers, elephant hide, fox dung, gorgon tongue, hydra blood
5 books on anatomy of various monsters
Treatise on the nature of a flesh golem (not its construction)
Wizard Scroll – Magic Mouth, Fly, Charm Monster, Polymorph Other
Cleric Scroll
Platinum Ring with Diamond – 9000 gp
Silver Mace with many Gems – 12,500 gp
3000 gp in value of lab equipment


(There is a 1 in 12 chance from here on out that if Alzar needs a component for a spell or such, it is in these that take up half a Bag of Holding at 10000 coins heavy).

[Abe Sargent]

They pass a chapel with nothing but a Magic Mouth that triggers and:

Idol – 1575 gp

They arrive in a crypt and there is a chest with a vampire inside sleeping, and a cross on the sarcophagus. Alzar tries to control it, and senses it is not undead. The Gem of Seeing reveals an illusion and it is really a knight in stasis. Alzar opens it up and orders the undead and orcs to hiding. The knight is brought out of status and takes the sword from the crypt – the cross. He thanks Alzar and asks to be taken out immediately – he is on a grave mission. Alzar does so, gives him a horse from their wagons, and is given a neckchain as thanks. Alzar returns below.

Gold Neckchain – 2000 gp

1500 XP for everyone for freeing the paladin lord

They arrive in the final area and round a corner and Alzar spies a basilisk but can tell it’s just a phantasmal force illusion. His Gem of Seeing shows a normal hallway that opens into a room with two doors. They move down, and suddenly, an orc is revealed trying to backstab Alzar and missing. He goes invisible again. Alzar retakes the Gem and starts looking when a mage with a mirror image in effect cracks open one of the doors and Lightning Bolt is cast at Alzar. He takes 17 after the save and several undead die from the angle including a gargoyle.

Alzar sees the thief and throws a dagger at him and crits him for 12 damage. Alzar orders everyone else at the mage. The invisible thief is wounded and bleeding. He stabs at Alzar with a poisoned blade and misses. A Mist Ball flies into the mage and he loses an image.

They win init. A Hold Person at the group causes Wassilon to fail his save, and two orcs. The thief misses Alzar. Alzar carves for 16 damage and he is reeling. Est and Carum hit once for another image from the mage.

Alzar wins init and kills the thief. The mage takes another image loss from an archer. He has 5 Mirror Images left. He casts Charm Person at Estaish and it fails. Alzar throws in a dagger and takes out an image. Est and Carum hit once for another image – 3 left.

The mage wins init and casts Darkness, 15’ radius around the group. Est and Carum miss. Alzar moves in. The archers are ordered to stop firing. The next round, the mage wins init again and casts Burning Hands and deals 4 damage to Carum, Estaish and Alzar from the fire spell..

Alzar carves away an image, Carum manages to hit for another in the darkness. Alzar hits for 18. Carum takes out the last one. Est hits for 10. A Mist Ball flies in and blinds the mage for 3 damage and 3 rounds.

Alzar wins init and kills the mage for 15.

XP – 2250 each of the four

They search and the Gem of Seeing and a secret door reveal a hidden area. Here is what they find:

Ring of Invisibility
Various weapons and armor
Gold Earrings – 800 gp for set
Jeweled Belt 3200 gp
2 vials of acid
Potion
Small case with vials of 5 different poisons
30 Bloodstone gems worth 50 gp each
Jewelry pieces worth 4000 gp total
Map of 3rd Level of Dungeon
Ancient Electrum Candle Holder – 1500 gp
3 wands with Nystul’s Magic Aura on each of them
3 potions -
Two Books of Magic (not spellbooks)
6000 gp of valuable spell components
Fire Opal and Star ruby – 1000 gp each
Topaz – 500 gp
Potions – Speed, ESP, Flying, Sweet Water
Ebony Fly
Ebony Statuette of Demoness Lloth – 6500 gp
Mirror of Mental Prowess
Jewelry – 5000 gp

5 spellbooks, secured for later magic dispelling and opening.


There is an iron box on the table and inside is the Orb of Golden Death.

The Orb of Golden Death is very powerful artifact. When he holds the evil object, he can Detect Lie, Know Alignment and Poison at will. It is a glowing golden object shaped like an intricate skull with a diadem mounting for some gems. Alzar knows the Orb can be amplified by finding the appropriate gems.

Alzar calls the Ebony Fly to service to see how it works.

Zadaxx
AC – 4
HP – 25
THAC0 – 16
1d6 damage in combat from ramming

Can be used three times per week for 12 hours at a time. Zadaxx will join him for the rest of this adventure likely. Flies very fast, and can be turned back to statuette at a word, and is the size of a pony, and can be used as a steed. If killed, reverts to statue form and that uses up its magic for that 12 hour period.

[Abe Sargent]

Having finished this level, they plunge to the fourth one, taking one of the stairs they found down. Since the Earth Elemental has just about thirty or forty minutes of summoning time, Alzar moves it to the front. Alzar hands the Gargoyle Cloak to the last normal skeleton and gets another gargoyle.

They arrive and Alzar decides switch boots to Elvenkind and becomes invisible, making no noise or path from his steps. There are two troll sentries here keeping watch, but without any chairs or things to lean against. Alzar suspects the alarm was sounded when so many were killed above. He goes forward and finds four more trolls to the left and right of the main corridor and 2 trolls ahead on the pathway up front. That’s 8 trolls in the entry way ish.

A quick check of the major areas leading to a giant temple area have 12 ogres, 12 trogs, 2 hill giants, 4 ettins and that’s a powerful selection. There appear to be at two spell casters in this central temple area. Alzar returns and its all bad news. It’s time.

He hands Wassilon a +2 longsword. Wave is handed to Carum and told to keep it down. Estaish is loaned Ogre Strength Gauntlets.

The Earth Elemental will be the bulwark of the force. Alzar will summon two more with Ring of Spell Storing and Mud Ring to give him a very powerful bulwark. He hands the Rod of No Turning to a Skeleton to stand in the back and protect his forces from being turned or commanded. He will use the gargoyles as a shock force and sit back, cast his Maidens, and start to devastate the opponent. Time to begin. He moves back and casts The Maidens. He now has an AC of -3 when wielding an Axe. The Earth Elemental and two others move in and the trolls yells for help. One is surrounded by gargoyles and the other crushed to death in one round by earth elementals and then killed by oil that Alzar has given to Wassilon to use to kill trolls.

6 more trolls are moving in. Alzar’s troops are immune to turning, he has three earth elementals, a buzzing giant fly, two impish creatures, many undead, pulls out the ghasts and ghouls and shadows, has three fighters and himself. The gargie troll is killed and more roars can be heard from several directions as the six trolls get closer.

Earth Elementals – AC 2, HP 40 each, once has taken 19 already, THAC0 – 13, Damage 4d8 if they hit, +2 or better weapon to hit.

As they approach, Alzar Charm Monsters a troll and it fails and joins his side:

Troll – 38 hp, AC4, THAC0 – 14, 1d4+5 twice and 2d6, regen 3 hp each round

With all of his allies, Alzar orders those immune to normal weapons to ready against the trolls. Elementals, shadows, and the four gargies will fly in behind after they engage, to keep them from running.

Estaish and Carum move in. Ghouls and Ghasts position themselves. Alzar orders his troll in near him as well as Zadaxx. The trolls are killed in two rounds and burned to death

8 trolls – 7 killed, one charmed.

Soon, Alzar sees a group of 12 ogres moving in very quickly. It looks like they have been affected by a haste spell. Alzar does likewise, using one from his Ring to speed the elementals, gargoyles, and shadows to double speed.

The ogres arrive and there are ettins and hill giants and bugbears and trogs emerging. The ogres are cut down by Elementals and undead quickly, and despite their double attacks, are unable to damage the creatures, but the ettins and hill giants can damage these creatures, like the hill giant hit the earth elemental before. Alzar can’t allows the major guys to get bogged down by ogre minors, so he orders the elementals in the center of the line to back away and creature a hole for the ogres to run down, and they do, 6 of them left, into the ghouls, ghasts, and skeletons waiting for them. Although at haste speed, they manage to kill a few, they are torn and paralyzed to shreds.

The elementals reform to take the major players coming in. Alzar launches a dagger at an Ettin moving in and hits for 12 damage. He orders the Elementals, shadows and gargoyles to concentrate on the ettins and hill giants, and ignore the bugbears and trogs, which they are immune to. One bugbear kills a shadow, so it must have a magic weapon. Alzar’s squad, hasted, wins init. The Elementals attack and two hit the damaged ettin for 39 damage and it dies. Gnolls and three spell casters are arriving. Another Hill Giant takes damages to the shadows and gargoyles combined attack. Three Ettin and Giant concentrate on the Earth Elemental that looks damaged and two hit for 24 damage and destroy it, leaving just two. The second attack kills a Hill Giant and one Elemental hits s second Ettin for 18 damage. The ogres are killed.

The trolls have been killed by oil by now. They win init. One spellcaster casts Web over the undead, two try to control undead and fail, and see their tool being used against them. Another cleric, looking very battle ready appears from a side corridor and begins to cast Hold Person on Alzar and fails.

They win init. Alzar moves forward with his troll, Estaish, Carum, Zadaxx in tow. The orcs fire in a volley at the remaining hill giant and one hits for 2 damage. The Earths hit the damaged Ettin twice for 43 damage total and it dies. The other hasted undead attack the bugbear with the magical weapon and kill it, and the Hill Giant and hit it several times for 22 damage. Alzar lashes out with a dagger and crits the Hill Giant for 14 damage and it dies. Dryshik drops a Wall of Fog behind the combatants and between them and the spellcasters. The gnolls and bugbears and ettins are engaged and the wall of fog does not affect them. The ettins hit twice on an elemental and deal 21 damage to it, it has 19 left. The elementals swing again and both miss. The minor double attacks kill the last hill giant and poke a bunch of bugbears and gnolls Their spellcasters have moved forward and are now inside the wall of fog and can see the battle again and be seen.

They win init. One ettin hits the wounded elemental for 13. 6 hp left. 12 gargoyles fly into view and move in to attack. Another Hill Giant comes from a side path. A set of 5 Magic Missiles fly into the damaged elemental and it dies. The spellcasters can heal spells on the wounded ettin. Alzar’s elemental attacks twice and hits once for 21 damage. A volley of arrows adds 11. A dagger from Alzar hits and it takes 13 from a crit and another hit and dies after adding 6 from Est’s Bolt. Carum uses the necklace to sling a Freezing Sphere stone in and it hits a gnoll and deals 13 cold damage to all creatures around, including 3 gargoyles and a priest and several gnolls and bugbears. The shadows and gargies are moving to their gargies and kill four. Alzar has his group move forward to the gap made by the death of the two elementals.

They win init. The ettin and hill giant attack the undamaged elemental. One hits for 9. 31 left. The gargies fly into our shadows and kill 4. Five more gnolls arrive with flaming oil skins and through them in. They kill most of the remaining, several shadows, and break through the line. With 20 gnolls and bugbears skill surviving coming in and attacking skeletons and ghouls and ghasts. One spellcaster casts Bless on their forces, another casts Hold Person on Estaish and it fails, even with the -4 bonus. 5 magic missiles fly into Alzar for 16 damage. A Continual Darkness spell is cast at Alzar’s eyes and he makes the save. The elemental attacks twice and hits twice for 33 damage on the hill giant. The gargies and 2 shadows left are ordered to attack their gargies and kill two more. Alzar uses Burning Hands from his axe for 13 fire damage on all of the creatures in front of him and many gnolls fall. Several gnolls and bugbears fall from the corporeal undead attacks. They attack back and kill several skeletons and a ghoul. A barrage of arrows from the orcs deals 2 to the hill giant. Estaish dives forward and slashes at the giant for 20 damage (gauntlets) and it reels. Carum stabs out with Wave but misses. Zadaxx hits for 4. The maidens miss.

They win init again. The Hill Giant misses the elemental. Their remaining gargies kill our two shadows. They gnolls and bugbears kill two more skeletons and three animal skeletons. They cast – Lightning Bolt at Alzar for 15 damage from his save. A Hold Person that works on Carum. A pair of cures. It kills a phantom maiden who got in the way. Alzar casts Vampiric Touch on the Hill Giant for 11 and it dies. He heals 11 back. Est stabs and hits the last ettin for 15. Zadaxx adds 2. The elemental attacks twice and hits once for 17 more damage. Gargies kills two more of theirs – they have three left. Undead kill most of their remaining bugbears and gnolls. A Mist Ball hits the mage who fails his save and takes 4 and blinded for 4. Megala follows up with a miss with its claws. The maiden hits the ettin for 2 damage. Wassilon is sneaking in. Alzar’s troll slashes the ettin for 6 damage.

Alzar’s group finally wins init. The elemental pounds the ettin for 18 and it dies. A dagger flies up and kills a gargie and their gargies kill the last one of theirs. The last bugbears are killed. Their clerics start to retreat. Alzar orders undead to move forward quickly, and some to dispatch the blind mage.

The mage is killed. One priest casts Darkness 15’ radius. Another is Mist Balled to no effect. Alzar leaps on Zadaxx’s back and hoists his axe and flies with the gargoyles after the one that looked the strongest. They find him and Alzar draws a Dagger of Venom and closes. He leaps down in front and the gargoyles get near him. The cleric Commands Alzar to sleep and he falls to the ground for one round. The gargies attack and one hits for 3 damage. The cleric runs and the gariges pursue, dealing 4 more damage. A Mist Ball on another cleric brings her down and the undead swarm and kill her. Megala is following the third to keep track of it.

Alzar recovers and leaps back on the fly. The cleric has been running for a round and the fly easily speeds up and passes again, with the gargoyles again lighting down. The cleric casts Hold Person at Alzar and it again failed. He slashes with the Dagger and misses the AC -4 of the cleric. The gargoyles attack and hit once for 3 damage. He wins and casts silence on Alzar. Alzar makes his save. He responds with a dagger and manages to hit by rolling a 17. The cleric takes 5 damage and makes a save vs poison. He fails and takes half of his original life in damaged. 33 damage. The gargies barely touch him.

Meanwhile, Megala has followed the other cleric and many undead have followed as well as Estaish and Wassilon and they kill the cleric.

This cleric casts Cure Serious Wounds. Alzar switches to Axe and slashes him for 16 (+0 for CE enemy). The gargies add 7 from two hits. The cleric draws a scroll and reads it and Alzar takes a Flame Strike for just 11 damage, save to 6. Alzar’s axe slashes for 14 on the backswing. The cleric wins init and quaffs an extra healing pot. Alzar hits for 14. The gargies miss. Alzar wins init and cleaves for 13. The cleric draws a hammer and attacks Alzar and misses. Alzar cleaves again for 15. The cleric misses and Alzar Vamp Touches with a spell from a Ring for 12 and the cleric falls.


Dead: 7 trolls, 12 ogres, 3 hill giants, 4 ettins, 25 bugbears, 20 gnolls, 12 gargoyles, 3 clerics, one wizard.

Alzar gains 7500 XP
Carum and Estaish gain 5500 XP
Wassilon Gains – 1500 XP

They have killed most of the creatures on the level and begin by searching all corpses:

Several keys
Tourmaline – 500 gp
Many weapons and armor
Boots of Levitation
Staff of Striking – 13 charges
Ring of the Grasshopper – Can leap five times higher and farther than normal
Many Potions
Bracers of Defense AC 3 – Which Alzar dons and now has an AC of 0/-2/-4 depending on circumstance.
Ring of Feather Falling
+2 warhammer
Ring of Free Action
Black Scarab inscribed with TZGYx4 on all of the spellcasters

[Abe Sargent]

Now they begin to investigate inside the various rooms nearby and do a lot of searching. Here is all of the stuff they find in easy places:

Crystal Ewer and Cup – 250 gp each
3500 gp worth of religious artifacts like candlesticks and small figurines and idols.
Jewelry – 35000 gp worth
9 wooden eggs in a set, each bigger, - 900 gp for the set
4 unholy symbols of fine metals and gems – 1000 gp each
Black Sapphire – 5000 gp x6
Carnelian with Fire Trap on it that kills a normal skeleton with weapons and armor
4 Violet Garnets – 500 gp each
Emerald – 1000 gp
Candle of Invocation - LG
2941 gp
2101 ep
+3 sling Stone
Stone of Controlling Earth Elementals
Ruby -0 5000 gp
Tapestries and rugs worth 6600 GP
Miniature Red Dragon carved of Ruby – 7500
4 Scrimshaw Handle Knives – 100 gp each
Tourmaline – 500 gp
5000 gp Volcanic Gemstones in Volcanic rock
Cleric Scroll
25 volumes on Battle tactics and strategies in various wars and sieges.
22300 in gems from a volume with a hollow center.
Magic Book
Four Silvery Furs – 4000 gp each
Platinum Pitcher – 500 gp
Bracers of Defense AC4
Daern’s Instant Fortress

Portable Hole with:

Spellbook
Large Oil Flask
Large Potion Case with 29 potions – can be checked afterwards – all generic ones though, no fancy ones.
Cloak of Poisonousness
20,000 gp worth of spell components and rare items

[Abe Sargent]

They have now searched everything before the temple, and now move to it. There are 10 entrances to and from this temple, and gates all around – portals for various places. There are numerous columns, an altar, and such in here. Alzar and the undead move around. Near the back, some fungi attack with disease and the undead and Alzar is immune. He has the undead kill the fungi.

Eight of the pathways end after hallways with frescoes that detail their various elements. The back one they move to. They find a chest and Wassilon manages to pick in, and then finds a trap, and removes it – pretty lucky all around actually. Inside:

Wand of Metal Command – 19 charges
Wand of Ice Storms – 42 charges
Candle of Invocation – CE – 3 hours remaining
2000 ep
4000 gp
1000 pp
Rope of Entanglement

There is a mystic and magic nexus at the back. Alzar returns. He investigates the portals. One is obviously to the earth plane, and he leads with his Earth Elemental still summoned and round and dons his Amulet of the Planes.

End of T3 and Begin T4

[Abe Sargent]

Alzar has just an Earth Elemental and himself . This is not the true Elemental Plane of Earth but a Node of it. Megala signals and several others follow. Alzar is joined by:

Estaish, Carum, Wassilon, Zadaxx, Megala, Dryshik, the troll, the earth elemental, 4 gargoyles

Everything else stays there, and the orcs are ordered to keep watch.

These Nodes are weird. They have one or two sentence descriptions for the rooms, and a list of all of the monsters found on the Node, and where a few homes are. No treasure, no stats – nothing. The Earth Node looks like a cave tunnel, but with raw earth on the bottom. These will be quick simmed out of necessity, due to a paucity of descriptions, and random treasure rolled and such.

[Abe Sargent]

Three are six tunnels leading out. The air is quite breathable. Alzar takes…#5 (random) 4 intersections. Forward is a dead end. Back, left is down. They run into an Earth Elemental which just lumbers past and ignores them. Maybe Alzar’s Mud Ring or the Earth Elemental with them? One exit back to starting room. Go down. Empty cave. Go down to huge cavern. Nothing. Return to intersection and other direction. Dead ends. All quiet. Run into crystal ooze on way back moving around. They attack and kill it with fire. Last road from intersection reveals cavern with gate symbol. Return to first room and take #3 of the 4 left. Wind up in grotto. Nothing. Take side path down and arrive in cave. Nothing. See entrance back to starting room, can continue down. Left or right. Left. Nothing and south cave with nothing. On way back to right path, run into Stone Giant wandering. Alzar talks with it, and it is wondering how to get out of here, and lead its family home. Alzar does not know, and is looking too. It nods, and they both continue.

Right path and down or right? Down. They run into chamber with 5 Chaggrin Grues.

Elemental grues are lower power elementals with an evil disposition. These move in. Alzar cannot control them on their own plane, even a Node of it, orders everything back and uses a Ring to cast Skulltrap and clears out the whole room.

XP – 4200 for Alzar

They search for treasure. They find:

21gems – 50 gp each
2000 sp
300 gp Gold Ring
And a Power Gem for the Orb. When Alzar takes it up, they transport o the Fire Node.

[Abe Sargent]

The Earth Elemental is completely destroyed by being away from any source of earth here. The environment is mega hot and Alzar tosses Wassilon a Ring of Fire Resist for the rest of their time here. It keeps them from taking any damage. The gargoyles are immune, and Zadaxx is taking heat damage, so Alzar orders it to return to statuette form. The troll will take damage and Alzar loans it a Fire Resist ring as well.

They move on. This room has eight doors, and it is very bright and hot, with embers, flames and such regularly making appearances. Alzar takes the 6th door – random. They find nothing in the room at the end and there were four corridors off the main path. The upper two lead to the same room and there is a square gate symbol here, but Alzar retreats. They head up to a room and corridor that is door #7 from the first room. There is nothing here. They go up and arrive in a huge hall. Nothing here.

They run into Darley, a magic user who claims to have been stuck here for some time. She asks to join the group. Alzar uses the Globe and she is NE and lying about her identity. Alzar senses she is not a mage at all, but does intend to contribute to the group and not to betray him at least not until she is out. He accepts her.

Darley, AC 5, HP – 27, THACO – 15, 1d8 from vamp touch, gains 1d4 back; can only be hit by magic or iron, Str 13, Con 16, Dex 10, Int 15, Wis 9, Cha 14. Can Suggestion, ESP, Charm, Shapechange at will. Can Dimension Door once/day. Actually an Alu-Demon

They return and check out two rooms behind doors. They run into a wandering pair of fire toads. They are killed easily and no one takes damaged from their fire attacks.

XP – 100 each to Darley, Alzar, Carum, Estaish, Wassilon

There is nothing in either of these rooms. They move into a new corridor and see #8 from the main room. They head along it and wander into a big room with the lair of a trio of salamanders of the fire persuasion. They try to negotiate, and Alzar cannot make them out, but suddenly, their words are made out for him. He is puzzled and reaches into his Bag of Holding and recovers a sword found earlier. It is an intelligent Frostbrand and can speak and interpret various languages, including the common Fire tongue and salamander. They do not want any more trouble after many of their family and clan were destroyed by Fire Giants. Alzar agrees to just leave. He hits a large room nearby with another symbol to a gate. They have also arrived at a lair of a Bodak, a powerful evil horror from the lower planes. As he is often an ally of Darley, he chooses not to attack the party, and lets them pass.



They pass the #1 door and arrive at another chamber. About 10 fire fundamentals fly out and about their lair and Alzar orders his group to retreat. Why bother against them? They press on and pass by three empty rooms before entering one with the lair of harginn grues.

There are 8 of these guys here. They can blink and are only hit by magical weapons. Luckily, they will not be dealing as much damage as normal due to the fire resist of Alzar’s group. They charge in with Alzar way in front like normal. Alzar cleaves a grue for 12 damage. Est hits that one for 9 and kills it. Carum and Wassilon both hit for 12 total. The troll is ordered to stay back. The gargoyles as well. A Mist Ball evaporates before getting to another. Darley makes motions and tags the grue for 6 damage. The grues attack, most missing Alzar, and a few missing elsewhere. One hits Estaish for 2 damage.

28/50 Estaish

They attack first and Alzar takes 4 from two hits. He carves an uninjured one for 17. Est kills the injured one and Carum misses. Wassilon puts down the other injured one for 9 damage. Darley hits a new one for 5 damage. Alzar Carum and Estiash attack again and hit for 26 damage and kill a 4th. 4 left. They make a morale check. Alzar’s team wins init. He deals 17, Carum kills it for 10 more. Est hits for 11, Wassilon for 10 and Darley for 3 and it dies – leaving just two. They flee.

Each of the five gets 650 XP

Alzar searches and finds:

6 gems worth 10 gp each
3 pieces of jewelry worth 2250 gp total
A Gem from the Orb which immediately transports them to the Air Node.

[Abe Sargent]

They are on top of a tall peak. It’s very cold and Alzar has everyone switch to Rings of Warmth except the troll – whose ring he just takes back, and Wassilon and himself – he only has 2. There are nine major or minor hollows in the mountains, and Alzar chooses #3. They fly down and arrive in a tunnel with two branches – each dead ends. Each is a lair for…8 vapor rats. They assume gaseous form and flee when they see how many creatures invade their lair. There is nothing else in here. The next lair has a white dragon. Alzar orders everything back, and grabs his Broom of Flying. He switches to a normal +2 axe since it’s CE. He hefts it up, and then trades for a Ring of Warmth from one of the people he wants to stay away. He has the Broom fly him in immediately and swings with his axe.

He gets in the first hit and hits for 18 damage on the white dragon, who roars up. IT breathes on Alzar and he takes just 12 damage after the Ring reduces it.

39/56 hp – Alzar

He wins init and crits the dragon for 19 damage. The dragon attacks and misses. (Cloak of Displacement). Alzar swings and hit for 13. It wins and breathes on Alzar again for 8 damage after save. Alzar finishes it off with an axe for 14 damage.

XP – 5000 for Alzar

White dragon blood, skin, horns, teeth, scales.

They search and find:

500 pp
Ring of Protection +2
Scroll of Protection from Traps
Potion of Super-Heroism
Plate Mail +1

[Abe Sargent]

They head back and take the #8 path. They head over and run into an Air Elemental on the way, but it passes them by. They find a cavern and the lair of more Vapor Rats, who again disappear. They return and take the #1 path, which has a lair of Idriss grues.

There are 8 of these fog cloud like enemies. They will do a lot more damage than the fire grues. Alzar draws the Horn of Blasting and blows it. All of the grues in the chamber in front of the horn take 15 damage and 3 die. Carum wings a stone into another for death. The other four, badly damaged, flee.

They find in here nothing but a Gem that takes them to the Water Node.

XP – Alzar and Carum each get 500

[Abe Sargent]

They are in a great indoor ocean. They are in a safe coral area right now. Alzar tosses Wave to Carum who uses one of its abilities to create a bubble of breathable air in an Airy Water spell. They can go in any direction. Alzar chooses what he believes to be south. They swim over a reef and reach a submerged shelf with outcroppings, and nothing else. They continue and find a hidden shelf with a triangle glyph to somewhere else. They go right and arrive at a small hidden grotto. North and they enter a small sea, and then a shelf. Finally a lagoon with a shelf and another glyph. They run into a Water Weird, which Alzar easily kills with his immunity.

They pass a sea, and then a shelf which is home to a pair of Vodyanoi – which are really slow and powerful.



Carum is pulled towards them. Alzar lobs a dagger and hits one for 12. Combat is engaged. The vodyanoi attack Alzar and Carum. The one on Alzar misses, and Carum is hit for just 2. Carum spears with Wave and hits for 8 damage. Alzar adds 15. Est hits for 8. Darley touches one for 5. Wassilon deals nothing. The troll tears into it for 6 and it dies. Alzar’s group wins init. They deal 36 with those that hit. It just dies.

XP = split 400 for each of the 5.

Inside they find:

16,000 gp
2000 ep


Alzar has the gargoyles carry some of the treasure back.

[Abe Sargent]

They head north and find a shelf and nw sea. They find some floating eyes who flee from them. They go west and arrive at a shelf-grotto with 14 lacedons, who Alzar controls. They have :

5000 cp
Gems – 5 – average 100 each

The lacedons move forward and are Alzar’s flank. They pass a shelf and the north sea and into the NW one. There is a submerged shelf here – the lair of Koalinth, which Carum controls and sends away with his Wave. They head south and reveal a hidden grotto with a lair of Varrdig grues.

There are 5 in here. They can water jet around. Alzar sends in the lacedons and they kill the grues after losing half of the lacedons. They search and find:

2,000 gp
Gem for the Orb

Alzar and company are teleported to a room they have not seen before. He begins to attach the Gems to the Orb.

Alzar now can:

Travel to, and survive comfortably in each of the four elemental planes.
Can Wind Walk, Earthquake, Flame Strike and Wall of Ice once per week each
Can Conjure 8 hd elemental with max HP (64) once each week per type.
Summon and control a demon Type I, II, III and Babau three times per day per type, but not more than once total per hour.

That’s in addition to Know Alignment, Detect Lie and Poison automatically.

They arrive in a new room with the 7 lacedons, 4 gargoyles, troll, Darley, and the fighters, Megala, Dryshik and Alzar.

This huge echoing hall is constructed of polished black stone and casting odd reflections of light. Alzar grabs Wave suddenly before it can protest and Carum is okay. He returns it to the Bag.

Alzar uses the Orb to return to the Earth world and finds the family of Stone Giants. He has them grab their things, and then teleports them back to where he was with the Orb.

[Abe Sargent]

There are four large symbols on the floor and a pathway out. One is a triangle of dull ecru stone, another a square of translucent stone, a third circle of silver and blue and a forth a long diamond shape with four pint radiating outside in orange and red. It’s obvious that these are more gates, after having seen some already. They take the corridor out and arrive in a huge room. The giants will stay here until the coast is clear.

This place is horrible and disgusting and loathsome. The stonework is leprous and mottled. There are three doors on the left, including one with a giant seal. There is a doorway to the right. There are dilapidated areas and a feeling of unhealth, but nothing here. They move to the doorway and arrive in a place of earth and chains.

This chamber is a strange composite of ink stone, golden chains and loose earth. There are violet fungi in the center of the room. The lacedons go in and kill the fungus, immune to its clouds. Alzar finds:

Ivory Case – 1400 gp
Wand of Illumination – 44 charges

There is nothing else in here so they go back to the rotting room. They enter a door on the left and it opens into a room of crowned skills. There are many decorations of skulls in here, but a search turns up nothing so they head to an adjacent chamber. This room has many frescoes of merriment and destroyed chairs and tables and couches and sofa and glasses, and bottles. A search turns up nothing.

They return and take the back door. This plastered room is decorated with wall murals, an show demons of lesser sorts paying homage to humans of evil mien. Scenes of killing and destruction rule. There is nothing in there so they advance to the next room. In here suits of armor and strangely fluted. As a lacedon moves in, they animates and attack it. Alzar orders the gargoyles to trade, and his suspicion is correct. They cannot damage the gargoyles and are eventually killed by them. They are added to the magic pile.

Four Topaz Gems – 500 gp each

They head down a corridor to another room – a chamber with a plain, unfurnished room. There is nothing in there but a door, so they open it and ,move to a lavish chamber with more tapestries and frescoes.

Gold Bowl - 235 gp

They move to the next room with more frescoes and a purple decoration. There is a map and many weapons, added to the Magic Pile. The map shows the locations of all of the agents of the Temple, and Alzar takes it.


Map of Temple Agents

They hit a bare wall and serach for secret doors. They find one back into the uncomfortable chamber, so they search the chamber for more and find another. They enter a room with a huge throne weighing 400 pounds but worth 50,000 g pas a piece of art. Alzar leaves it here for now. The room is stinking and littered with slimes., and fungus and more

[Abe Sargent]

They retreat to a corridor out to a large hall.

This room has polished steps that descend and a serpentine and porphyry floor. The walls are black marble and runes of glowing gray and inky black mark the walls, with glyphs that seem to shift. There are three pillars in front, one of electrum, one of gold and one of platinum. The hall opens up into a great hall.

Some 30 feet beyond the odd pillars the hall broadens to 60 feet thick and a huge dais of translucent alabaster commands the west of this place. Before it is a magical device set into the floor – a hexagon with two inter-locking equilateral triangles and the circle that rings them. Tips protruding from the sides glow different colors – red, orange, yellow, green, blow and indigo. The center glows purple.

On top of the dais is a throne of silver with 666 precious gems There are set to form leering demon faces, skulls, fungi, and like patterns. There are of all colors and sizes and shapes. Behind the seat is a huge tapestry.

The west end of the room is very dim – virtually dark. As Alzar approaches, he sees a crone on the throne, old and wizened. She yells that Alzar won’t get her treasure, and then tells him he may take the pillar of electrum. Alzar refuses, remembering the Crone of Chaos he met at The Rock.

She offers the gold pillar, and he refuses. She offers the platinum, and again, he refuses. The crone desperately fumbles with the arms of her throne once again and a olive ray springs forth and eating a hole in the floor, and then a Prismatic Sphere appears, and misses, devouring the hag and blasting her to ash.

Alzar uses his Gem of Seeing and sees it as an illusion and the crone has slipped behind the tapestry. He tells everyone else. He tells everyone to stay back and moves forward, and flings back the tapestry, revealing the crone. Enraged, she changes back to her normal form.



Alzar makes his Netherworld Knowledge proficiency check and knows who this is. – This is Zuggtmoy, the Queen of Fungi – one of the very powerful demon lords. She will be a very difficult foe. She will take nothing from Acid, half damage from magical fire, nothing from cold damage, and can only be hit by iron or magic weapons. She has 222 hit points.

Battle begins. Alzar grabs his +2 axe from the Bag of Holding. He orders everybody back and she passes him to get at others. Most people just attack him, having analyzed correctly that he is the greatest threat. Odd. Alzar orders everybody out of the room to see if he can get her to come around and charges at her. He cleaves into her for 17 damage. She ignores him and moves to attack others. He orders everybody behind a human sized secret door in the back and Alzar moves to stand in the doorway, between Zuggtmoy and everybody else.

She refuses to attack him and backs off. Why? The artifact, that has to be it. He shuts the secret door. It’s just Alzar and Zuggtmoy – even the familiars are in the other room. She retreats and he follows. He is able to keep up to her with his Boots of Striding and Springing and hits her regularly. She tries to drop Continual Darknesses and turns invisible regularly, but Alzar continues to hunt her out. She cannot leave her prison, and she cannot attack Alzar.

It takes a while, but the end is obvious. Alzar cannot take damage from her, and she cannot flee – all she can do is try to hide temporarily. She pleads for her freedom and will trade her treasure to Alzar, or serve him, but you cannot trust a demon. After an hour, Alzar kills Zuggtmoy.

XP - 20,000 for Alzar (it’s normally 35k but I reduced it to the artifact.)

Zuggtmoy disappears and cannot return to Thorasia for 100 years.

[Abe Sargent]

He opens the doors and everybody comes back in. In the back hallway is a pair of 4 globes, and a lacedon tries to move them and is killed by blades. Wassilon finds a trap and sees the trigger. They move all for stones at once and a chest rises and opens. Inside is:

Wand of Fire – 72 charges
Rod of Smiting – 41 charges
Ring of Feather Falling
Ioun Stone – Incandescent Blue Sphere (+1 spell level)
Wizard Scroll – Maze, Death Spell, Monster Summoning I, Symbol of Discord and Disintegrate
8 Potions – Animal Control, Climbing, Flying, Healing, Invulnerability, Philter of Persuasiveness, Polymorph Self and Super Heroism


And with that, they have completed the Temple of Elemental Evil, including destroying the evil demoness that was bound back here by the Ambers.

Alzar reunites with those on the 4th level and they carry the giant throne out, and then come back for the skeletons after dropping off a few things and people in Hommlet. The men-at-arms and orcs are both willing to pledge loyalty to Alzar in perpetuity, and the men-at-arms come from the Nulb area and are used to the undead, orcs, and more. They are LE and LN in alignment. Alzar adds them to his retinue .

Throne – 50,000 gp

[Abe Sargent]

Alzar ends with these undead:


6 lacedons
10 ghouls
3 zombies, 1 normal skeleton wearing gargoyle cloaks
3 normal skeletons with weapons and armor
14 skeletons with armor, weapons, shield and 8 hp
17 animal skeletons
6 ghasts

He has nowhere to put the lacedons and frees them in a local river. He loves the gargoyle cloak from this adventure.

The ghasts and ghouls will join the Agarats in his complex, and they all look like ghouls. The gargoyles easily fit in future adventures, and as they die they are replaced by the cloak on another.

Now that Alzar has cleaned out the Temple and makes copies of the map for locals to ferry out the agents, the Temple of Elemental Evil is destroyed. He keeps the Orb as an artifact of significant power, for his own gain. The family of stone giants are free and head into the hills and mountains to start a new life. Darley goes her own way but Wassilon joins as a retainer and will help make Alzar’s place look nicer and more Svartálfar – ish at home while Alzar is away.

[Abe Sargent]

XP for the people:

Estaish – 115,596 (Level 7) – Now with 50 HP
Carum – 95191 (Level 7, 8 at 125k) – Now has 64 HP.
Alzar – 256,693 (Level 10, level 11 at 375k)
Wassilon – 11,000 fighter (level 4, level 5 at 16k)/11000 thief (Level 5, 6 at 16k)

Wassilon gains some thief abilities and 3 hp, which will be looked at later.


Alzar is now level ten. He gets 4 hp and is now 60.

5/5/4/3/3 – new 2nd level and 5th level spells.

In two levels he’ll be able to cast Level 6 spells and become very powerful.

[Abe Sargent]

List of Items from the Adventure:


Coins – 8168 ep, 31991 gp, 6601 cp, 6009 sp, 2283 pp

Potion of Healing, Potion of Speed, Water Breathing
Jeweled Dagger worth 250 gp
Four bolts of silk worth 100 gp each
Jeweled Necklace – 2400 gp
Topaz – 500 gp
Cloak of velvet trimmed with fur – 200 gp
9 +1 arrows
50 tiny pearls – 10 gp each
Large gold cup – 450 gp
3 onyx gems – 50 gp
Ivory statuette – 85 gp
Brooch with Carnelian Stone – 800 gp
Protection from Undead Scroll
Gold chain – 7000 gp
Ruby Ring – 4000 gp
Silver Chain – 125 gp
Silver Bracelet - 170 gp
6 Azurites – 10 gp each
Copper Belt – 35 gp
2 Agates – 100 and 500 gp
Javelin of Lightning x1
450 gp Jet Ring
Ring of Shooting Stars
Ivory and Gold Box – 350 gp
Potion of Speed
+1 mace
Jasper – 50 gpx9
Hematite – 10x28
Jet and Gold Brooch – 175
Silver Flask – 40 gp
10 sheets of parchment – 40 gp
Small Tome – 500 gp value to evil spellcaster detailing sacrifice of humans to earth elementals for various effects.
Stoppered Vial of Ruby Dust – 1000 gp
2 amber rods – 25 gp each
Small bottle of yellow sulfur – 40 gp
Tin Box of saffron – 500 gp
Tube of quicksilver – 100 gp
Vial of Ground Tourmaline – 500 gp
Flask of Lion’s Blood – 10 gp
550 gp Gold Ring
Bronze and Jet Ring – 50 gp
Tourmalines 100 gp x4
Feldspar Chunk - 50 gp
Bronze Maul, Knife, Bowl and Ewer inside – all detect as evil
Carnelian Ivory Bracelet – 500 gp
Bone Scroll Case – 100 gp
Scroll of Protection vs Earth Elementals
Potion of Diminution
Ring Mail +1
Gems – 100 gp x28
Ring of Protection +1
Wand of Paralyzation (38 charges)
Ring of Quick Action
Large Violet Garnet – 700 gp
Gold Fire Amulet – 100 gpx4
Potion of Poison
Tapestry with Gold and Silver Thread – 2000 gp
Robe of Deep Crimson set with Gold Fire Symbol and small rubies – 2500 gp
Sardonyx Copper Box – 150 gp
Rare herbs – 200 gp
Scroll of Protection from Devils
Red Silk Robe with Fire Symbols and many garnets – 3000 gp
Jeweled Ring – 500 gp
Tome – The Anatomy of the Harginn (The Fire Elemental Grue) worth 500 gp and tell how to summon, and what they do, etc.
+1 flametongue sword
+1 banded Armor
Gold Garnet Studded Chain - 750 gp
Gems x 19 – 10 gp each
18 sprigs of wolfsbane
+1 dagger
+1 short sword +3 vs lycanthropes and shapechangers
5 silver daggers
Scroll of Protection against Lycanthropes
Evil Items – Crystal knivesx2, Crystal Bowl - 250 gp for bowl, 1250 gp for each knife
2 giant crystal braziers each worth 10,000 gp.
Ring of Fire Resistance
Gold Fire Altar Decoration – 500 gp
Plate Mail +1
Four Gargoyle Cloaks on four zombies
Gold Ring with Tentacles in peridot – 750 gpx2
Malachite Dinner Service – 2000 gp as a set
Four texts on Elemental Water, Evil – 250 gp each
Green Pearl Ring – 570 gp
Rod of Smiting – 14 charges left
Robe of Green Velvet with Gold Trim and Gems and Creature of Ten Tentacles– 7150 gp
Iron Key with word D’Lyss on it.
Gold Ring with Peridot Bezel – 1000 gp
Ivory Tray – 50 gp
32 gold dishes – 1900 gp for the set
Seven Tomes on Secret Rituals of Water Evil of various sorts.
Coral Box – 100 gp
100 tiny seed pearls – 10 gp each
Aquamarine – 5000 gp
4 Cloaks of Air – 100 gp each
Gold Ring – 700 gp
+1 chain mail
Cloak of Protection +1
Dagger of Venom with one dose left
Ceremonial Robe of High Cleric of Air – 1500 gp
Scroll of Wizard Spells – Friends, Magic Missile, Knock, Mirror Image, Web, Slow, Rary’s Mnemonic Enhancer
Gold Platter – 300 gp
Platinum Bracelet – 1000 gp
Four Opals – 1000 gp each
+2 shield
3 large sacks of fine garments – 500 gp each sack
Jet – 100 gp
Feldspar Necklace – 150 gp
Bag of Holding – Smaller – just 2000 coins worth
Silver Lamp – 120 gp
Fine Rug – 260 gp
Gold Cup, Ewer, Box – 675 as set
Jade and Silver Bracelet – 1700 gp
Zircons – 6x50gp
Bone Scroll case with one Wizard Spell – Pyrotechnics
Scroll of Protection from Elementals
5 Azurites, 6 Hematites and 7 Tiger Eyes each worth 10 gp
Box of Carved Ivory – 100 Gp
6 pieces of Incense of Meditation
Axe +1
Chain Mail +1
8 vials of holy water
Wand of Lightning – 28 charges
Pouch – 5 pieces of jewelry worth a total of 8200 gp
Alabaster Flask – 25 gp with rare perfume worth 1400 gp
6 gems worth 100 gp each
Two pieces of jewelry worth 500 gp each
Potion of Plant Control
Wizard Scroll – Spider Climb, Extension I, Levitate, Infravision
Flatbox
Silver Chain with Otiluke’s Freezing Sphere Sling Stone once/day created (4d6 damage)
Platinum Urn – 20,000 gp value
Gold Necklace – 1000 gp
Five Star Rubies – each worth 1000 gp
Bracers of Defense AC6
+1 short sword
Bloodstone Gold Ring – 50 gpx2
Electrum Amulet – 70 gp
8 silver plates – 200 gp total
Javelin +2
17 gems worth 10 gp each
Gold service with 2 flagons, 2 platters, plates, salt cellar – 1550 as set
Cinnebar Serving Set – 450 gp
2 Candelabra of Rose Gold 2250 gp each
Undead Turning Rod Immunity 10’ Radius
32 black pearls worth 500 gp each
Protection from Undead Scroll
Crystal Decanter – 200 gp
26 crystal goblets 50 gp each
+1 longbow
Elven Cloak
Elven Chainmail made for female
Periapt of Proof vs Poison +3
Scroll – Gust of Wind, Tongues, Polymorph Self, Remove Curse, Airy Water, Limited Wish
4 small Ivory carvings worth 3150 gp total
Small Pottery Flask – 1000 gp of quicksilver
2000 gp of Alchemical supplies
Enough magical ink for 7 scrolls to be written
Parchment and vellum necessary to do so
Ape teeth, basilisk scales, cockatrice feathers, elephant hide, fox dung, gorgon tongue, hydra blood
5 books on anatomy of various monsters
Treatise on the nature of a flesh golem (not its construction)
Wizard Scroll – Magic Mouth, Fly, Charm Monster, Polymorph Other
Platinum Ring with Diamond – 9000 gp
Silver Mace with many Gems – 12,500 gp
3000 gp in value of lab equipment
(There is a 1 in 12 chance from here on out that if Alzar needs a component for a spell or such, it is in these that take up half a Bag of Holding at 10000 coins heavy).

Idol – 1575 gp
Gold Neckchain – 2000 gp
Ring of Invisibility
Various weapons and armor
Gold Earrings – 800 gp for set
Jeweled Belt 3200 gp
Small case with vials of 5 different poisons
30 Bloodstone gems worth 50 gp each
Jewelry pieces worth 4000 gp total
Map of 3rd Level of Dungeon
Ancient Electrum Candle Holder – 1500 gp
3 wands with Nystul’s Magic Aura on each of them
Two Books of Magic (not spellbooks)
6000 gp of valuable spell components
Fire Opal and Star ruby – 1000 gp each
Topaz – 500 gp
Potions – Speed, ESP, Flying, Sweet Water
Ebony Fly
Ebony Statuette of Demoness Lloth – 6500 gp
Mirror of Mental Prowess
Jewelry – 5000 gp
Tourmaline – 500 gp
Boots of Levitation
Staff of Striking – 13 charges
Ring of the Grasshopper – Can leap five times higher and farther than normal
Bracers of Defense AC 3 – Which Alzar dons and now has an AC of 0/-2/-4 depending on circumstance.
Ring of Feather Falling
+2 warhammer
Ring of Free Action
Crystal Ewer and Cup – 250 gp each
3500 gp worth of religious artifacts like candlesticks and small figurines and idols.
Jewelry – 35000 gp worth
9 wooden eggs in a set, each bigger, - 900 gp for the set
4 unholy symbols of fine metals and gems – 1000 gp each
Black Sapphire – 5000 gp x6
Carnelian with Fire Trap on it that kills a normal skeleton with weapons and armor
4 Violet Garnets – 500 gp each
Emerald – 1000 gp
Candle of Invocation - LG
+3 sling Stone, permanent
Stone of Controlling Earth Elementals
Ruby -0 5000 gp
Tapestries and rugs worth 6600 GP
Miniature Red Dragon carved of Ruby – 7500
4 Scrimshaw Handle Knives – 100 gp each
Tourmaline – 500 gp
5000 gp Volcanic Gemstones in Volcanic rock
25 volumes on Battle tactics and strategies in various wars and sieges.
22300 in gems from a volume with a hollow center.
Four Silvery Furs – 4000 gp each
Platinum Pitcher – 500 gp
Bracers of Defense AC4
Daern’s Instant Fortress
Wand of Metal Command – 19 charges
Wand of Ice Storms – 42 charges
Candle of Invocation – CE – 3 hours remaining
Rope of Entanglement
21gems – 50 gp each
300 gp Gold Ring
6 gems worth 10 gp each
3 pieces of jewelry worth 2250 gp total
White dragon blood, skin, horns, teeth, scales.
Ring of Protection +2
Scroll of Protection from Traps
Potion of Super-Heroism
Plate Mail +1
Gems – 5 – average 100 each
Ivory Case – 1400 gp
Wand of Illumination – 44 charges
Four Topaz Gems – 500 gp each
Gold Bowl - 235 gp
Map of Temple Agents
50,000 gp Gold Throne
Wand of Fire – 72 charges
Rod of Smiting – 41 charges
Ring of Feather Falling
Ioun Stone – Incandescent Blue Sphere (+1 spell level)
Wizard Scroll – Maze, Death Spell, Monster Summoning I, Symbol of Discord and Disintegrate
8 Potions – Animal Control, Climbing, Flying, Healing, Invulnerability, Philter of Persuasiveness, Polymorph Self and Super Heroism
Portable Hole
Large Potion Case with 29 potions – can be checked afterwards
Cloak of Poisonousness
20,000 gp worth of spell components and rare items



5 spellbooks, secured for later magic dispelling and opening.
1 spellbook from another spellcaster


Orb of Golden Death with all four element stones

Magic Pile – Elven Chainmail, +3 crossbow bolt, +1 shield, +1 battle axe, +2 chain mail, Cleric Scroll – Animate Dead, Prayer; Cloak of Protection +1, 1 Potions of Healing, +2 dagger, Morning Star +1, 3 jars of Keoghtom’s Ointment, Ring of Protection +1, Cleric Scroll – Flame Strike, Dispel Magic, Tongues; +2 warhammer, Rope of Entanglements. Censer of Controlling Air Elementals; 2 Pots of Fire Resist, Cleric Scroll – Resist Fire, True Seeing, Neutralize Poison; Potion of Water breathing – 2 doses; Ring of Free Action; Cloak of the Manta Ray; Trident of Yearning; Cleric Scroll - Purify Food and Drink, Part Water, Flame Strike, Control Weather; +1 mace; +1 shortswordx2; +1 leather armor; Cloak of Protection +2; Potion of Invisibility; +2 spear cursed backbiter; Crossbow of Speed – missing string; Cloak of Poisonousness; Ring of Delusion; Pot of Red Dragon Control; +1 shield; Pot of Hill giant Strength; Cleric Scroll – Animate Dead, Raise Dead, Resurrection; +1 leather; +2 shield; Pot of Polymorphing; Treasure Finding; Healing, Diminution; Tome of Leadership and Influence; Vacuous Grimoire; +1 plate; +2 shield; Pots – Extra Healing, Speed, Healing, Growth; Ring of Protection +2; +3 plate armor; +3 shield; Rod of Smiting – 19 charges; Wand of Fear – 22 charges; Cleric Scroll – Dispel Magic, Silence, Slay Living, Cure Critical Wounds; Tome of Vile Darkness;


+3 Frostbrand, +6 vs Fire creatures – Lawful Good, Int 16, Ego 17, speaks Typic, Giant, Dragon, Salamander, Fire – Detect Evil, Magic, Shifting Walls, and Levitate.


Ally – Oohlgrist – Troll Chief – Ring of Fire Resistance, Necklace of Adaptation, Potion of Extra-Healing, Necklace of Gold and Rubies – 4750 gp, Ruby – 1000 gp, Jeweled Belt – 5250 gp, Bone Armor – AC 2, 1d4+5, 1d4+5, 2d6+2 each round, THAC0 15, regenerates 32 damage per round except for fire and acid damage

Chief of troll tribe with twenty other trolls

19 Bone Knit but not animated Ogre Skeletons; 4 ettins, 3 hill giants


5 spellbooks of Falrinth:

Level 1 – Read Magic, Detect Magic, Identify, Affect Normal Fires, Burning Hands, Charm Person, Comprehend Languages, Hold Portal, Dancing Lights, Enlarge, Jump, Message, Nystul’s Magic Aura, Push, Unseen Servant, Write, Ventriloquism

Level 2 – Continual Light, Darkness 15’ Radius, ESP, Fool’s Gold, Forget, Irritation, levitate, Mirror Image, Rope Trick, Tasha’s….Laughter, Wizard Lock

Level 3 – Clairaudience, Flame Arrow, Hold Person, Invisibility 10’ Radius, Lightning Bolt, Tongues, Water Breathing,

Level 4 – Minor Globe of Invulnerability, Dimension Door, Fire Trap, Extension I, Monster Summoning II, Wizard Eye

Level 5 – Contact Other Plane, Wall of Force


Senshock’s Spellbook:

1st - Read Magic, Detect magic, Charm Person, Feather Fall, Magic Missile, Unseen Servant, Sharpen
2nd – Web, Detect Invisibility, Tenser’s Hunting Hawk, Knock, Magic Mouth, Blastbones
3rd - Haste, Lighting Bolt, Fireball, Fly, Tongues, Dispel Magic
4th – Fire Trap, Polymorph Self, Thunder Lance, Charm Monster
5th – Wall of Stone, Conjure Earth Elemental, Teleport



Those won’t be unlockable for a while – Alzar wants to Dispel Magic them a lot.

[Abe Sargent]

Let’s talk about the unusual or different items acquired in this run. A Frostbrand sword grants Fire Resistance in addition to the normal powers, and can extinguish normal fires 50% of the time by being put in them and magical fires 10% of the time. This one is intelligent, or else it would be given to Estaish right now. It is too powerful and would dominate him.

The Ointment can be rubbed on skin, heals disease, poison and other conditions and a bit of health too. Alzar found one set each of female and male chainmail. It can be worn by someone and cast spells too, but it’s just a suit of armor, and Alzar has better armor from Bracers of Defense AC 3 he acquired on this go.

The flametongue sword is normally +1, but gets +2 vs regenerators, +3 vs cold, inflammable or avian creatures and +4 vs undead. It sheds light. The fire from it can be used to light torches and fires.

The Censer and Stone can summon 12 HD elemental the following round. They are friendly, and can be summoned once per week. That means Alzar can now summon elementals from the Orb, the Censer, Stone, Mud Ring and his own spells and rings if he chooses to so stock up. Plus he can summon demons from the Orb.

The Manta Ray cloak gives 90% chance wearer looks like manta ray underwater, and the ability to swim and breathe underwater like one. Gives an AC of 6. Tail spine can attack underwater for additional attack of 1d6 in addition to normal damage.

The two Cloaks of Poisonsousness will kill anyone who puts them on, no save. (A Periapt of Proof vs Poison will grant a save though). Trident of Yearning is a -2 cursed trident that forces its user to go into water, and then likely drawn unless he has protection. A Ring of Delusion pretends to be another ring and then provides no info. This one pretends to be a Ring of X-Ray Vision and acts as such for ten minutes or so before proving no info, but the wearer believes they are still getting info and make it up. Unlike most cursed items, it can be taken off at any time. The Vacuous Grimoire – when read will force two saves to permanently reduce Wisdom and Intelligence.

The Crossbow of Speed, when repaired, will be +1 to attack and damage, and then fires twice a round.

The Book of Vile Darkness can only be read by and used by a cleric, and the other Tome will bump Alzar’s Charisma when he reads it, and then disappear.

The Ioun Stone orbits a person’s head and gives them a bonus until taken down. It can be grabbed or netted by others, and thus has some vulnerability. This one will increase Alzar’s spell level by one for the purpose of casting spells. So, when he casts Animate Dead, instead of animating 10 level one skeletons, he can raise 11, the maidens will stay an extra three minutes, etc.

The Portable Hole and Flatbox are other ways of reducing weight just like a Bag of Holding. A Portable Hole is a hole that is made of cloth and can be pushed against a surface in order to access the contents. The hole is 10 feet deep and 6 feet wide. Anything that can fit in to this giant space can be taken with the Hole, and has no weight, no bumping, etc. A Flatbox is a wooden box 3 feet long, 2 feet wide and 2 inches deep. However, when opened the interior of the box is filled with darkness, and cannot be dispelled. It is actually 6 feet deep, and can have a maximum of 500 pounds put into the space, but because of the size, and the darkness, it cannot be accessed in combat or quickly. A Bag of Holding will sends the items needed to the hand as soon as it enters, making it very fast, but a Flatbox will not, and it can take a bit of searching in it to find what is held here. It’s great for transporting treasures back that are needed for a while.

The Rope of Entanglements will, on command, jump forward and entanglement up to 8 normal size creatures or one ogre sized one. The magical rope cannot be broken by pulling or fire. It has to be cut at AC -2 and takes 22 damage and the entangled cannot be so cut. Lesser damaged is repaired in an hour by the rope.

Daern’s Instant Fortress is quite unique. This is a small metal cube. When commanded, it grows to form a tower that is 20’ square and 30’ tall. There are arrow slits on each side, and battlements on top. The metal walls extend 10’ into the ground. It has a small door that will only open to Alzar’s command – not even Knock will work. The walls are adamantite, and thus are immune to things like weapons, fire, and even ballistas. It can absorb 200 points of damage before being broken through. Damage is cumulative and does not automatically repair any damage. It springs up in one round and anyone caught by its sudden growth takes 10d10 damage.

Cool huh? That gives him automatic safety every night, but at a loss of inconspicuousness.

Wand of Metal Command will spend a charge to transmute lead to gold, and 2 charges to Heat Metal like the spell and 3 to Glassee or Glassteel or Crystalbritte as an 18th level mage.

The Mirror of Mental Prowess allows Alzar to telepathically read the thoughts of those whose image is reflected in it, Scry like a Crystal Ball with Clairaudience, answers a question once a week about a creature being shown in the mirror and can act as a portal once a month to walk into the scene being scryed. Because it shows who is being scryed, that means Alzar gets telepathy and clairaudience against people. It is too large to take with his adventures and needs to be left in his home place.

The Ring of Shooting Stars is a nice find. It can operate at night, and underground. At night, under the open sky, it can Dancing Lights once/hour, Light 2/night, Lightning Ball 1/night, Shooting Stars 1/week. The Ball Lightning releases a ball that does 4d12 damage in a 5’ sphere. The Shooting Stars are an electrical variant of Meteor Swarm, and fire off 12 damage impact and 24 damage electrical, and it fires off three of them. The Underground variant uses Faerie Fire 2/day and Spark Shower 1/day. The spark shower fans out and does 2d8 damage to those in a 45 degree arc in front and out to 20 feet and 4d8 to those in metal armor.

Lots of powers with that ring.

So, a ton of tools from this adventure.

Alzar gives all of the EP, CP and SP from this adventure to Wassilon, the men-at-arms and orcs and Carum and Estaish for 1k gp each. They will be getting magic items soon as he divvies them up, as part of their take.

[Abe Sargent]

With the adventure over, Alzar and the crew head back to his lair, to widen it. He will spend some time, now that he is level 10, using the Manual of Golems to make a Flesh Golem. He swings by Fort Amber, and while there, comes across Vala Goldspire, a young magically oriented woman who was specifically seeking Alzar out after encountering his book. She becomes the first of his apprentices.

The items are purchased, and Alzar heads back. He spends a month with the Manual and uses the Embalm spell to make the body parts better and healthier – which will give him a more powerful golem. At the end, he has created:


Bokus, Flesh Golem

AC 4
HP 48
THAC0 11
Damage 2d8/2d8

Bokus was affected by an Embalm spell and is stronger, and in better condition, than many flesh golems. He is wearing small amounts of armor plating sewn into his skin to improve his AC as much as possible. Bokus is immune to normal weapons, and most magical damage. Lightning restores its life, and fire and cold merely slow it. Bokus is not subject to the normal break free chance because he was made from a Manual of Golems.


Bokus will accompany Alzar on his journeys. The Ring of Shooting Stars make so much electricity that he should be easy to heal, and a Wand of Lightning Bolts can help.

[hoopsguy]

If you were able to roll through "Temple of Elemental Evil" that easily then I'm not sure how many modules are out there that will threaten Alzar the Mighty.

[Abe Sargent]

They are out there. There are rooms in the giant series where you are fighting against 10, 20 or 30 giants at a time. That's pretty rough. I think Alzar can easily handle any I or X module at this point - those are the ones normally meant for people in the high single digits.

So modules like Desert of Desolation, Ravenloft, and such would be easily to handle at this point. One of the things I did in this module was to make sure the humanoids fought in groups. Whenever they fought, if there were other humanoids anywhere nearby, they went and gathered the group to assault Alzar, even if the module didn;t call for it, and that's didn;t even crack him. Carum almost died from the Juggernaut though - that was a 6d10 attack and it could have killed him. But I don;t think that would slow down Alzar much at this point. Now, let's add the Ebony Fly, let's add the Flesh Golem, let's add the ability to summon 7 elementals an adventure from items, and four demons - even minor, let's add the undead and etc.

Alzar is learning tricks. Haste on elemental and undead and golems? Very powerful and without the normal disadvantage of the Haste spell.

What Alzar actually does for the next few levels in my original creation of him is to stay at home and study, animate dead, grab the occasional ally, research spells, make constructs, summon demons, train apprentices, and occasionally sally forth to handle nearby dungeons, no matter how small or big, to gain their treasures. After a while, he will entrust his apprentices to do so for him.

He will use a variety of spells to find powerful magic items, books on specific topics and rare spellbooks, and then send forth parties to sally out and father what is needed for spells, construct creation, etc.

He creates a powerful network of magic users and sages and death priests and they use each other for information, spell trading, and such.

He creates a permanent alliance with the Temple of Melqart to station a death priest with him permanently to research and provide tasks for him.

So,m by the time he hits level 15, in my original version, he has devils and a daemon, multiple constructs, apprentices, a tribe of several hundred orcs, a blue dragon, multiple packs of ghouls and shadows, hundreds of skeletons and zombies, giant skeletons, crypt things, a spectator, and more. With his spells, he has many magical traps throughout his complex - such as the watery double, blastbones, skulltrap and such that has already been seen. His books are protected with things like Sepia Snake Sigil and Xult's Magic Doom, and he has a few hidden Fire Traps and Explosive Runes in places where they do not damage the rest of his stuff. He even has a secret room hidden away from everybody else with no entrances at all and not adjacent to anything, just hidden in the rock, and the only entrance is two passwall spells at the right place. That has duplicates of the right spellbooks and tons of portable jewelry and a few magic items of high value as an emergency cache in case his lair is invaded and taken over.

The point is to use his allies to clean out every lair, tower, ruin, cave, cavern, keep, castle, and so forth that has stuff and bring it back, and simultaneous make his area more and more safe. Adventurers aren;t going to go running around an area if there is nothing there for them to find. He has several early warnings like the crypts on top of his hill and numerous caves he makes with packs of shadows and ghouls and the orcs, as early tripwires.

But now, add a pack of trolls, add the control of many elementals, and so forth, add the mummy Taurian, and more, and then add the things he gets in the next few levels and suddenly he becomes that much more powerful.

[Travis]

More, more, more!

[Abe Sargent]

I gotta feeling it;s the end for Alzar and the dynasty. Not sure though, because last night I read A Mighty Fortress again in the bathtub, so I haven;t necessarily put away all of the D&D stuff, but I haven;t been in a mood to play D&D like I was before. At least not now or yet, but I haven;t entered the next obsession either.

[Travis]

What about a fast forward to a higher level Alzar? Jump him ahead to level 18+ and have an epic encounter or two?

[Ragone]

Reading this makes me really miss my old school d&ding with buddies.. they all moved away and really don't feel welcome at the local comic/gaming shop in kc(mostly young kids now)

would really love to find a forum game or somesuch

[Abe Sargent]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[Marc Vaughan]

Originally Posted by Ragone

Reading this makes me really miss my old school d&ding with buddies.. they all moved away and really don't feel welcome at the local comic/gaming shop in kc(mostly young kids now)

would really love to find a forum game or somesuch

+1

[CrimsonFox]

Wow this is awesomely awesome! I've never seen anyone do this, but it's perfect. Love oldschool dungeondelving!

[CrimsonFox]

It's WHITE PLUME MOUNTAIN time!

[Abe Sargent]

Spells Alzar has created in the last five years:


Alzar's Bookmend (Alteration)

Level 2
Casting Time: 1 round
Components: VSM
Duration: Permanent
Target: 1 touched book


This spell takes the pieces of a damaged book and reconstitutes it. The new version is completely restored. It cannot restore a magic book or spellbook. In order to restore a book, you must have more than 50% of the original book, and a blank book which is consumed in the process worth 20 gold.



Alzar's Scrollmend (Alteration)

Level 4
Casting Time: 1 round
Components: VSM
Duration: Permanent
Target: 1 touched scroll


This spell takes the pieces of a damaged scroll and reconstitutes it. The new version is completely restored. In order to restore a scroll, you must have more than 50% of the original, and a blank scroll magically enhanced and ready to go, which is consumed in the process worth 100 gold.


Alzar's Spellbookmend (Alteration)

Level 6
Casting Time: 1 round
Components: VSM
Duration: Permanent
Target: 1 touched spellbook


This spell takes the pieces of a damaged spellbook and reconstitutes it. The new version is completely restored. In order to restore a spellbook, you must have more than 50% of the original, and a blank spellbook ready to go, which is consumed in the process worth 5000 gold.



Alzar’s Golem Heal (Alteration)

Level: 6
Casting Time: 1 rnd
Components: VSM
Duration: Permanent
Target: One construct

This spell can target any construct that the caster controls. The spell mends the construct, a process which is much easier than healing a wound as a priest. The caster may only target those constructs that he created himself, because he knows them intimately. The construct is healed of 50% of its maximum hit points immediately. The material component for this spell is a handful of raw material identical to the material used in the construction of the construct. For example, when going to heal an Iron Golem, a handful of iron ore or ingots must be used.

Alzar typically does not keep this spell memorized, but it is available for emergencies on a scroll in his library, and he can memorize it as needed.






Alzar’s Axethrow (Alteration, Artifice)

Level: 3
Casting Time: 3
Components: VSM
Duration: 1 round/level
Target: One Axe, held


For the duration of combat, Alzar’s Axethrow turns a normal axe Alzar has in his hand into a +2 axe. In addition, the axe gains the ability to be thrown at a target, no matter its weight, at a distance of 100 yards. If thrown, the axe will grow in size. The caster must make a roll to hit. If the axe hits, it will embed itself in the target and deal the level of the caster divided by four rounded up d6 damage. (So, level 1-4: 1d6, 5-8: 2d6, 9-12: 3d6, 13-16: 4d6, etc). Once the axe hits its target, the spell ends. If it misses, the axe returns to the caster’s hand at the end of the next round, and can continue to be used in combat or thrown for another try. This spell only works on non-magical axes, and only on axes. The material component of this spell is a lodestone, consumed by the spell.

Alzar uses this on a non magical axe when he loses his axe, or near the beginning of combat from behind enemy lines.

[Abe Sargent]

During these past five years, Alzar has expanded his lair and his retinue. He has created the above spells, made constructs, studied, and trained his apprentice, who is a quick study. He has rarely ventured out, using the time to expand his powerbase and his knowledge. But now, something has happened...

[Abe Sargent]

While on the Isle of Dread, Alzar discovered three weapons of massive power and ego. The first was a trident called Wave which overpowered most users and served the goddess Tangaroa.

The second was a night black blade with the stars of death twinkling among them. Specially enchanted to absorb souls, this weapon, Blackrazor, has a powerful intelligence that overwrites the wielder's will with its own.

The final of the weapons discovered in White Plume Mountain on the Isle was a powerful hammer. It was called Whelm. It was especially designed for Dvergr to fight against giants, trow, and goblins and was particularly powerful in that direction. It would consume its user in a frenzy to hunt down and find the enemies it was designed to destroy.


One day, much like any other day, Alzar arrived at his secret treasury to deposit some scrolls, only to discover that Whelm was no longer on its rack.


The hammer, Whelm, has disappeared!

[Travis]

Oh my, can it really be...

[Abe Sargent]

Alzar begins to search for the missing item - which is a powerful weapon that he wants returned. Some lists include Whelm as an artifact, but Alzar knows its full powers and it’s just really powerful. It’s one of the most powerful items he has, even if none of his minions can wield it. Alzar does not let go of power easily.

He moves to his Library and pulls some of his personal spellbooks. Divination spells are the order of today. After spending half of the day with his magic, he has located the hammer more than 100 miles away. He focuses a Crystal Ball on the location and spies the new owner. A young female Dvergr has the Hammer in her hand and is approaching a Hill Giant fort.

The female challenges the giants, and out come four to attack her. She acquits herself well and slays one. However, the other three manage to blast her before she can turn the Hammer onto them. Her beaten corpse is left where it lies on the ground, and they collect the Hammer and return.

Alzar prepares himself and casts Teleport to the location he sees in the Ball. He then immediately draws and sheathes the Sword of Lyons, turning invisible and unseen to the Giants in their halls. He grabs the corpse of the female Dvergr and pulls it over a hill. He casts Speak with Dead and begins to communicate with her.

Her name was Tavisht, and she was the daughter of a small tribe of nearby Dvergr. She returned from a hunting expedition to find that her entire family has been killed by the local Hill Giants. She swore vengeance on the giants, and a local spirit of the hills arrived and granted her any wish she desired. She asked only for the tool to slay the giants that had slain her family, and Whelm had arrived in her hand. Feeling the power course through it, she moved to the fort, but found, not vengeance, but death.

Alzar lets her go, and casts Teleport to return home. He has much planning to do.

[Abe Sargent]

G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief





Voted part of the #1 Adventure of all time for the games 30th anniversary along with the seven modules in the G-D-Q series, this was published in the late 70s. It is a module that makes sense. The dungeon has a theme and is built around it. Rather than random encounters designed to test a party, this was one of the first modules with a basic concept. And yes, I have the original version of the Giant modules that we will be using.

[thehitcat]

I am thrilled that Alzar is back!

Thanks Abe!