Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 7)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

Moving up from the ankheg nest, when Tak-tha motions for silence, and the torches are doused.  Ahead, past the room of eternal conflict (where the undead remains of dwarves continue their fight every now and then), silhouettes are seen.

Carefully, the group approaches the cave, and realises that one of the figures is Beren - being held between two bulky individuals, and roughed up by a third, an assassin like the one confronted almost a week ago.

A few more blows were given to the mul, as he refuses to answer the assassin's question, and the party start to creep forward.  Despite his stealthiness, Tak-tha alerts the ruffians of his presence before they can all close in, but the party, fighting from the dark, still have the advantage.

The assassin quickly dispatches of Beren, as combat is met.  Two more thugs lurk around outside, along with three elves armed with swords and bows.  Rhotan Vor and his men have already been subdued, but Rhotan hired the team for this very purpose.  Tired, worn out, and near exhaustion though they are, they make short work of the would-be assassins, and although one escapes to warn Ulruun, the rest are eventually killed.  A new name is heard, as the leader is slain (for the second time); with his dying breath, he lets out a curse upon Kuoroar!, crying "Tsalaxa take you!", as he falls to the sandy floor.

The rest of the day is spent hurriedly moving all the remaining goods from the treasure room to the carts, before Ulruun and his soldiers can catch them.  Strangely, Zadusic was no where to be seen.

They rested briefly over night, and left early the following morning - instead of returning to the Silver Springs, where Ulruun was most likely still stationed, they made a wide arc around the area, adding a day or two to their travel time, but hoping for a whole lot less angry, treasure-hungry guards.

The next days passed slowly, as the drivers fought to keep the heavily-loaded carts from sinking too far into the shifting sand dunes.  The heroes helped out where they could, with Garidias and Gretchan seeing to the kanks injuries and inevitable tiredness.  It was not until late on the second day of travel, when the road to Tyr was once again visible, that the wildlife fianlly grew tired of their trespassing. 

A large silk wyrm, along with a number of her offspring, assaulted the caravan, trying to gain some tasty humanoids to feed upon.  once her attack was repelled, and her kin slain, the wounded beast retreated to the wild, hurt and seeking shelter.  Although some wished to hint it down, the knowledge of the more pressing danger - Ulruun's scouts - took them to the road.

Throughout the next night they moved, foregoing sleep in order to put more distance between them.  But though they sacrificed much, as the sun rose, so did it reveal the dark cloud of running crodlu on their trail.  With the kanks already slow from their pricey loads, their need for rest was dropping their speeds to a slow crawl - the crodlu and their scouts would be upon the caravan within the hour...

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 6)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

Toramund had provided you with good information, for you had found your way through the Canyon of Gothay to the vault of Darom Madar easily enough, and though the restless dead within it were not happy with your presence, you persevered, and discovered the hidden treasure - Rhotan Vor would be pleased, his life searching could now end!

As Gretchan undid the last arcane sigil binding the protective wards to the silver wall, it slid downwards into the ground, revealing a short passageway which in turn lead to a small room. Via the flicker of torchlight, you can barely make out chests, racks of weapons, and other amazing valuables piled around the chamber.  The glint of gold - real gold! - drew the party into the chamber, and almost too late did they see the final guardian.  Standing in the middle of the vault, was a withered, ragged figure in rotting finery, it's gaunt features dreadful and unearthly.

Tak-tha and Kuoroar! charged forward, leaving Gretchan and Garidias to face the wight's other attack: Zadusic possessed.  From behind, the tiefling fired down arrows upon them, quickly sending the young girl to the floor, bleeding badly.  Her eladrin companion of so many years didn't stop for her, instead charging in to confront the cause of the ranger's betrayal.  The battle there was fierce, Darom being as focused in death as any dwarf was in life, and playing with the minds of the others - especially Beren, with whom he shared some blood.  Turning the party against itself was not his final trick, though!  As he was destroyed, the party moved to rest, electing to leave those unconscious that way, and not waist their magic on them...and then Darom returned, with a vengeance!  At less than half strength, and with some of their number still down, the final fight was very fierce, and the treasure of the Madar Dwarves was almost lost again...but they managed to prevail in the end.

Not wanting to leave the treasure just yet, everyone started sorting through the great wealth - even their smaller-than-desired percentage of this wealth was still a small fortune each, more than they would have ever thought possible to set their eyes on.  Only Gretchan had seen anything approaching the wealth she now wore on and held in her hands; but that had never held the magical power that her gloves and staff contained.

Electing to rest there the night, instead of moving out and alerting Rhotan, Zadusic watched over them.  The tiefling still felt uneasy around the party - especially Garidias, who had not forgiven his magically-caused betrayal - and wanted to prove his worth.  He had no sleep that night, and remained behind the next morning, as the team moved off to search out more of the vault.

Apparently, not only Darom had been so strong to remain behind with a vengeance; his wife, Dynera Madar, and their two children, Lyos & Taran, still clung to a semblance of a presence.  All three were now phantoms, wraiths lurking around a Sorrowstone, which was itself a trap for those who might happen across it's path.  Many fears and sorrows were met that morning, and a lot of crying was done amongst all, until the stone could be destroyed, and the wraiths all dispersed back to wherever they were meant to rest.

The final stop before returning to the surface was the tunnel under the main hallway's floor.  Feeling that it would not be a difficult challenge, and that Rhotan and his men really should be alerted soon, Beren returned to the caravans, whilst the others moved into the tunnel.  It lead into a cave, mostly natural, but with enough scratch-marks to cause them to think that their earlier suggestions of ankhegs were going to be correct.  Indeed, they wandered right into a brooding next, with a pair of adult ankhegs trying to protect their young.  After Tak-tha was dragged away, Garidias made a valiant stand, giving Kuoroar! the time and courage to take out the dangerous pair of overly large burrowing creatures, even as the warlord was himself dragged away.  Gretchan narrowly managed to save him, and remove him from the male ankheg's pincers before it retreated down a hole, and the threat was dealt with, ensuring safe passage for the workers to remove the remaining treasure from the vault.  All that was left, now, was to go and meet with Rhotan Vor.  And, at some point, have a rest!

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 5)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

 Silver Spring oasis has long stood as a vital stop on the trade route between Urik and Tyr. Its longevity in a desert filled with dangerous monsters and brutal bandits is a testament to the skill of the Silver Hand elves who have guarded the fortified oasis for generations.  Rhotan Vor believed that their chieftain, Toramund, could tell them much about the dangers that infest the nearby canyons, as well as give advice on what areas may hold such things as the vault.  This information, he hoped, could prove invaluable to them, and aid their search greatly.

Unfortunately, the party were not the only ones trying to get an audience with Toramund.   Kuoroar! was initially mistaken to be another slave of Ulruun the Repugnant, who was currently camped on the northern side of the oasis. Fortunately, the elves did not know that Kuoroar (as well as Gretchan) was indeed one of Ulruun's slaves - an escaped one, at that.  Whilst they do not like or wish to trade with the slavers, they would also not harbour escaped slaves, lest that bring the wrath of Ulruun and his men down upon the oasis.

Garidius was eventually able to win them some time with the elven chieftain, and with a lot of bartering, displays of endurance and skill, and a considerable amount of smooth talking, Toramund was won over to their cause.  He even let them know of their hidden psionic potential, with which Garidius and Gretchan immediately displayed ability.

That evening, as the sun set and the desert cooled to merely uncomfortable levels of heat, the team set out for the Canyon of Gothay. Although in part an actual canyon, a natural rift many centuries ago resulted in half of the canyon to fall a hundred feet or more, throwing the other half up just as far.  The resulting terrain was not only dangerous, but riddled with numerous caverns that needed exploring. 

After numerous hours of searching, and a few near-misses with what appeared to be ankheg lairs, a large cavern filled with dead bodies was discovered.  These bodies included the fairly recent dead, other natural predators that had died over the years, and two teams of dwarves from decades ago.  It was the oldest dead that attacked.

The undead soldiers of Madar, as well as what was once an assassin of House Tsalaxa, were still fighting, though their lives had long since ended.  Something in this area had destroyed the natural order, and their conflict seemed eternal...even if it were stilled at times.  With the dead defeated, the party moved into the vault proper.  Rhotan elected to stay outside with the wagons and his men.

The inside of the vault was carved stone, and aside from a large crack in the entrance chamber (through which Kuoroar! dropped, and decided that the continuing tunnel was clearly not part of the vault, and thus wouldn't lead to the treasure), the place looked quite untouched.  That was, until they reached the Ancestor Hall....and discovered that they were the ones disturbing the tomb.

Wisps and skeletal soldiers leapt at them, whilst arcane glyphs on the tombs caused creeping, incorporeal hands to lash out at those who strode too close by.  And by the time Tak-tha had discovered the hidden compartment beneath the stone throne, Zadusic was unconscious.  Not even Beren's expert healing skills could revive the ranger before he had taken serious damage.

Once the glyphs had been destroyed or deactivated, the compartment and it's strange door could be further examined.  A huge slab of smooth, dark, smoky-coloured material stretched across the recessed wall, charred bones and small heaps of ash rested at its base.  There was no visible means of shifting, raising, or lowering it, leaving Tak-tha to wonder if it was a door at all.

The monk tried to approach it, but a blast of energy knocked him back.  Garidius and Gretchan moved up and together disabled the traps and spells protecting the silver wall, finally allowing it to slide downward into the ground, and reveal a short passageway that leads to another room.  Even from the small alcove, chests, racks of weapons, and other amazing valuables could be seen piled around the chamber.  The treasure of Darom Madar had been found!

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 4)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

The trek back to Altaruk went by without incident, and when Rhotan Vor received his goods and personnel back, he was quite happy.  However, a quick look over the goods brought out a questioning nature in the dwarf - eventually, it was revealed that the map was something he had spent considerable time and money tracking down.  He had been searching for the fabled vault for some time now, and although he wasn't certain that the map was legitimate, it was the best lead he had in over seven years.

With promises for sharing of the possible treasure, as well as  Rhotan agreeing to feed and water the team, if they helped protect his caravan, they are given a day to rest and collect supplies.  The following morning, the caravan heads north, following the Great Road towards Silver Spring.

They made good time the first day, stopping to camp further north than the party had travelled in their previous trip.  The second day, however, was not as pleasant.  A few hours into daylight, a crodlu cry gave small warning of an attack - a small band of elves, lead by a rider with dark, defiling powers, assaulted the caravan, and only after much fighting were they repelled.

The unusual thing was that although they fought well, ultimately they seemed to be more interested in getting to Rhotan than escaping...

Finally, the small unnamed oasis was reached - and good reason was discovered for it's lack of name.  It was little more than a shallow mud pit, surrounded by scarce bushes.  With some work, drinking water could be recovered from the mud, but it was not what they had hoped for.  And, nor were the "Crimson" bandits who had moved into the place and demanded payments for their goods.  Yassi and Drokan were clearly ill-informed on the abilities of the party, and had expected Rhotan to have fielded less able warriors.  Yassi was especially surprised as Gretchan began to throw the halfling around the oasis!

Their weapons and small stash of goods were claimed as compensation, although doubts were raised over just how well the weapons would work, given that half the bows had broken in the skirmish!

With two attacks on them already, Rhotan was concerned that they would not reach the safe plateau before sunset.  Baazrags inhabit the local area, and move swiftly through the sand to catch unsuspecting foes.  Swarms of the creatures can swiftly devour a helpless individual, and would make short work of the caravan, should it be caught.  As the creatures came forth from the ground, Garidias and Kuoroar! each found themselves assaulted and poisoned; only with the help of Gretchan's blasting psionics did they survive. 

A weary, bloodied, and ready to collapse group camped on the solid plateau that night, and with much relief, they made it to the Silver Spring Oasis barely after noon the following day.

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 3)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

With Rhotan Vor raising the reward for his missing caravan to 170 ceramic pieces, and Garidias proving interested in searching the caravan out, too, the team packed up their scarce belongings and headed away from Altaruk, into the desert. 

For four hours, the party moved towards the north, following the rough path the trade caravans used.  Eventually, Garidias told them that they were near where he woke, after the storm.  Some searching eventually showed up remnants of the caravan - including a few bodies.  This time, Tak-tha was able to study the correct end of the dead, and discovered that not all of them had been killed by the storm - some had wounds suggesting blowguns, and many had small bites, as if by a hungry reptile, over their bodies.

Before the party could study the site further, eight silt runners leapt up and attacked them.  Clearly, these little creatures were the cause of a few of the deaths - their blowgun venom was potent, and their cries (which Zadusic could understand) were only a longing for the fresh meat upon the party's bones.

After a few close scares, the party managed to chase the creatures away; once their wounds were seen to, the fleeing creatures were then tracked back to the location of a wagon, which had been run aground over a kruthik hive.  These creatures were also fought off, and the silt runners tracked some more - to the ruins of a tower.  Beneath the desert sands, a few rooms had been recovered, and the remnants of a silt runner tribe had taken up residence.  Three remaining caravan drivers, now prisoners and "spare food", were tied up to the back of the dark chamber, which had multiple sarcophagi and crumbling rubble throughout it.

Here, the silt runners fought their final battle, their leader inciting them on to heroic deeds and almost sending Kuroar! and Tak-tha from this world.  A solitary ssuran foolishly tried to poison Beren, but the mul smacked him down - as he did to the silt runner leader, after Gretchan threw it across the room.  Zadusic was also taken down, having fared poorly in the previous encounters, but again, Garidias' presence kept everyone that little bit more alive.

In the end, they had an underground base, three half-starved caravan workers, and close to 500 ceramic pieces of trade goods to themselves.  The next question was - what were they going to do with it all?

Return to Altaruk today was not a wise decision - that distance of travel was dangerous when people were fit and lightly packed.  Carrying the former prisoners and all the extra gear, on top of being so injured, was beyond crazy.  So the party cleaned the tomb up a little, and made to rest there overnight.  Whist they worked, some further searching was done, to work out why the silt runners had been here, and what their plans were - a map showing the location of a number of different ruins was found on the ssurian's body.  The current 'tower' was marked, as well as another of small other locations.  However, one ruin in particular was circled in what appeared to be blood - Madar's Vault.  It seemed important, and it seemed that the ssurian was collecting supplies and followers to head that way - further north, away from Altaruk.

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 2)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

After a few weeks of odd-jobs and low-level gladiator bouts, neither of which netted the group any more money or supplies than they needed to survive from day to day, they decided to be more active.

Beren put himself forward in a solo-championship challenge; whilst the others (except Magnus, who had disappeared a few days earlier, muttering plans of revenge upon Kaldras) put themselves forward for a high-risk, high-reward challenge.  In this battle, they faced off against four gith savages, with the restrictions on killing removed.  The battle was fierce, and for a moment, victory was in their grasp, but a lucky hit on Kuoroar! took him down, and by the time there was only one gith left, only Tak-tha remained to oppose him.  Moving from pillar to pillar, the thri-kreen tried to evade the javelins hurled at him, hoping for the creature to run out, but his wounds caused him to be too slow, and the match ended with the arena medics running to stabilise the fallen team.

They were not the only ones to fall that day - Tellemon, the local captain of the guards, was murdered; the poison used fast-acting enough to prevent anyone from interfering.  Being outsiders, the bruised team was asked to search for the murderer on behalf of the Governor, Arisphistaneles.  He feared it was an inside job, and promised to reward them, should they find the culprit. 

Tak-tha didn't help much when it came for questioning witnesses, the kreen continuously falling back to his native tongue.  And Kuoroar!'s knowledge of anatomy lead to a great study of Tellemon's feet (instead of the puncture wound by his kidney).  But together, and with the aid of Gretchan and Zadusic, they located the murder weapon - a dagger, coated with poison, and empowered with arcane magic.  They also tracked the murderer to the gladiatorial quarter, and eventually confronted him and his dwarven accomplice in a deserted barracks.  They put up a fight, but were eventually overpowered, and brought before the Governor...who recognised the dwarf as a friend...

It turned out that Arisphistaneles was the head of the Veiled Alliance cell in the city, and Birk one of his agents.  Tellemon had been part of the True cabal (a group of individuals who were quite the opposite of the Veiled Alliance; they wanted more power to the Sorcerer Kings, and revelled in the power that Defiling brought).  He had recently discovered the Governor's ties to the Alliance, and planned to assassinate him: Birk had caught news of this, but didn't have time to pass it on before the attempt was to be made, so took matters into his own hands.

Arisphistaneles was most pleased with the group's work, and as well as a future friendship, offered to look into certain matters that the party were struggling with currently.  He also rewarded them as promised, and gave them a fine set of armour made from Kank hides, which fitted Zadusic quite well.

With high spirits after a job well done, the group returned to their camp, rested, and then re-entered the arena, intent on winning!  There, they faced a half-giant who was almost large enough to bring great question on the "half" classification.  He was fierce, moving about the battle quickly and dealing a lot of damage, but they slowly worked him down, and in the end, he fell with a thud - atop Kuoroar! and Tak-tha, but fell all the same.  The team had won, allowing them to regain a little of the crowd's favour after their last loss.

After the battle, a familiar figure approached Gretchan, congratulating her and asking for a word.  This was Garidias, a former servant of her father's whom she last saw when their caravan was attacked, back before she was made a slave. 

Garidias had also been made a slave, although apart from the small mark on the inside of his left wrist, one might not notice.  His way with words and insightful grasp of tactics had kept him well in the past months.  His 'owners' had been part of the caravan that had gone missing in the recent sandstorm; he alone had made it to the settlement.  He asks Gretchan (and the others, should they be willing) to help him search it out: there was a rare item in the caravan that he would hate to see left to the desert...  As it happens, Rhotan Vor has increased his asking price for help to 170 ceramic pieces, no doubt in part due to the difficult nature of finding the caravan at all, should many more days pass by.

Aside from this, the only other offers of work are Karlen's desire for treasure hunters to claim rumoured artefacts at a fabled ruin; and generic caravan guarding duties.  Sadly, none of these are returning to Tyr, as the turmoil over there (because the Sorcerer King, Kalak, has remained absent this past month, fuelling the rumours of his death) has caused many merchants to fear for their safety in the unruly city.

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 1, Chapter 1)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

The trek from the turmoil of Tyr through to the relative peace of Altaruk was long and harrowing.  The Highsun heat, coupled with the intense cold of the night, wore out more than a few of the caravan guards.  When the raiders attacked the caravan, the guards were almost overwhelmed - and indeed, Gretchan fell, much to her disappointment.

It was most likely this tired and exhausted state that convinced the elves to try their ploy - and allowed it to go mostly unnoticed.  Still, the elves did not prove to be as sturdy as the guards they had hired - which would explain why they were hired in the first place!  If it were not for the prompt response of Tellemon and his guards, Kaldras may well be dead, and the party free to continue their lives as wanted criminals...

Instead, they were challenged to a game in the arena, largely to allow Tellemon, and Governor Arisphistaneles through him, to profit off the disturbance.  The half-minute race around the thorny briars was intense, and went into overtime; but even with Gretchan being disqualified and Zadusic fainting from overwhelming pain (as the trapjaw munched on his leg), Kuoroar!, Magnus, Tak-tha and Beren were able to catch Kakdras and steal the final coin away from him, for a final result of 4-3.  They had their moment of glory, reclaimed the item he had gifted and retaken, and were eventually paid for their earlier work.

Tellemon even promised them a share of the earnings, whenever they wanted to call on him.