AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

The Fellowship and the Cave

It had been some days and an unlikely bond of trust has developed amongst the group of travellers. They had survived several skirmishes with zombies and giant spiders and now rest in the confines of a barricaded house in an abandoned village. Botrytis closes the thick gilded edge of his grimoire and returns it into his back pack. The king of forgotten gray is standing watch nearby, clad in armour and brandishing his two handed sword. The other members of the party lay scattered about the abandoned house which they re-enforced into a makeshift safe-house. Feeling secure enough with the warrior on watch to rest his mind after the exhaustion of memorizing a spell, he allows his mind to drift off as he recounts how he came into the company of his travel companions several days prior. As he ponders, nearby he can hear the faint whispers of arcane tongue as Elril preloads his repertoire of spells for that day. As through driven by fate, six strangers found themselves near the outskirts of a village beside a funeral pyre at precisely the same time and an improbable fellowship of men, elves, a halfling and a dwarf was forged. And so they came to be...an odd fellowship indeed. Morning came and the chill of the wind blustered about them as they crept warily out of their stronghold and meandered towards the outer reaches of the village. They marched two abreast along the village road, like a seasoned troop of warriors and were truly a sight to behold. "Fear not fellow travellers, for the king of forgotten gray shall lead you to victory"; cries Rhetulas as he advances towards a bridge at the far end of the village.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

The others consist of Craven- A wood elf ranger gifted in the skills of both bow and blade, Bofor - A dwarf wielding a long sword yet possessing the nimble fingers of a thief, Delreen - Halfling cleric of the god; Obad-Hai and at the rear of the party lurches Elril, the human invoker of dark thoughts. Botrytis cleverly positions himself in the centre of the marching order, protected by the meat shield about him. The party nears the bridge which is encapsulated by the overwhelming noise of rushing water underneath. The hiss of the icy torrents distracts the stalwart party from realising the approach of dark figures in the mist. A swarm of zombies approach and attack without hesitation. Several of the party are clawed in the ensuing melee and Botrytis falls unconscious. As the fighting heart in all but the king of forgotten gray is diminished, Delreen steps forth looking evil in the face and utters the divine words; "In the name of Obad-Hai, I command you to go. Bugger Offffffffff !!!" Feeling the immense power imposed by the presence of an invoked woodland god, they flee. As Delreen leans down over the unconscious Botrytis and heals him, Bofor leaps forth and swings his mighty long sword, eviscerating a zombie in half, the torso separating from the lower body and sliding sideways onto the ground. With the scent of the woodland god diminished, the remaining zombie horde turned back towards the party to once again attack. The party fight valiantly with each member utilising his individual proficiencies to gain leverage upon the onslaught of zombies. With a keen and practiced eye, possessed only by the highly trained ilk of a wood elf ranger, Craven unleashes a volley of arrows with his bow. Sweat drips down his nervous brow as two arrows miss their mark and fly off into the mist.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

The third arrow strikes it's mark, firmly embedding itself in the sweetspot between Botrytis' shoulder blades and he falls unconscious to the ground. After several forays the party seeks shelter, choosing to retreat back to the village with Rhetulas carrying the slain Botrytis over his shoulder as they run like beaten dogs. The party barricades themselves in an abandoned armoury for the night and are healed only to re-engage the following day. Finally the weather beaten party thrashes the enclave of zombies, crosses the bridge and approaches the mouth of a cave on the other side. The cave before them disappears into darkness beneath the hillside and as the party forms up in pairs, Botrytis strikes a flint igniting his bullseye lantern. He raises the lantern high and illuminates the previously hidden murkiness of the cave ahead, revealing a passageway some distance in, leading to unknown dangers or treasure. Botrytis and Bofor lead the fellowship further into the cave checking for traps as they walk and eventually into a passageway some distance inside. The party follows the passage which leads them further inside the hillside to a partially collapsed room carved from the hillside rock. A pile of rubble lies in the centre of the room and a whistling sound emanates from the far wall. As the party are about to enter, Bofur's dwarfish subterranean senses detect that the room is unstable and likely to collapse. He raises his hand as a ward, then speaks. "Thi...Thi....This"; he stutters, "This room. Room is not safe". There is a brief moment of recognition and then without a word being spoken the party creep carefully and quietly to the far end of the room where they find a passage leading away.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

The party travels further down various tunnels and finds several rooms of varying size and state of collapse. They enter an elongated room measuring 60ft by 30ft. A large pile of rotting timber lays near the centre of the room and the party see signs on a recent cave-in near the far wall where the whistling sound of air movement can be heard. Rhetulas turns to Bofor and asks; "Do you like me or not Dwarf?" "I . I have. Have no problem with you"; stammers Bofor. "Dwarf, do you mean me harm. Do you know anyone else to mean me harm? asks Rhetulas. Standing in this stone room, somewhere under the hillside Bofor considers his position as he casts a nervous look around at the other party members who are all staring at him with mistrust. "Ah, I . I mean. I mean no one any harm"; he stammers. The king of forgotten gray considers the dwarfs' demeanour and his answers, then simply sniffs and starts looking around the room. With the tension diffused, the party begin to check the room for hidden passages or treasure. Deeper into the dungeon they travel. As they make their way along a passageway, Craven questions Rhetulas; "Where is your kingly armour me lord?" The king of forgotten gray is quick to reply; "I left my vorpal plus five sword and plate mail behind". The party listen to the brief exchange, but keep checking for traps and hidden doors and passages as they traverse the fine network of tunnels. After a while the party enter a room with what appears to be another passage at the far end. The room reeks with the stench of faeces and rot.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

A pile of an unknown substance lays in the middle of the room. Bofor approaches the pile at the centre of the room and to the horror of the other party members picks up a handful of the foul substance and puts it to his nose in the manner that farmer smells fruit. "Hm. Mmm"; he considers the smell momentarily, then states; "It's definitely poo". Although disturbed by the display, the party shrug it off as a mysterious habit of the subterranean dwarf and turn their attention towards the passage at the rear of the room. With a new found wonder about the dwarfs previously unknown subterranean abilities and habits, the party decide that the dwarf would be the best candidate to investigate the new passage. "Go on you gutless dwarf"; says craven. Rhetulas assumes a regal stance and says: "I order you to go forth dwarf. Ok, go down the back passage". "I'm not. I'm not. Not going near any back passage"; stammers Bofor in panic as he misjudges the meaning of Rhetulas' words. Bofor's thoughts return to the faeces in the centre of the room, as he considers which beast deposited the stools. As he ponders on the source, the party move on and travel further into the dungeon, occasionally stumbling upon strange creatures or trinkets. As a result several melees occur and finally the party consider returning to the surface, after a fierce battle during which several members of the party are rendered paralysed. The party later stumbles upon a room in the shape of a four leaf clover. Refuge litters the room and two collapsed columns near the centre of the room lay on their side hiding parts of the room in darkness.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

As the party consider whether to rest or continue, they are ambushed by a hoard of zombies and a tenuous battle ensues on two fronts as the party is attacked from two sides. The zombies are dispatched as the party comes together as a fellowship laying waste to the undead. As the melee ends, Elril approaches the columns and reads glyphs carved into the stone. The glyphs speak of a god Vox who is powerful and sacrifices humans. Just at that point Bofor sights a giant spider whilst investigating the shadows and yells; "Spider". As Botrytis flees towards the entrance of the room, Bofor who is being attacked by the giant arachnid, attempts to strangle it around the neck but fumbles and loses his grip. During the battle and whilst reading the glyphs, Elril is bitten by a spider and collapses to the ground, his life ebbing away. More spiders drop from above and the fellowship again come together in battle as Botrytis returns to the fight and casts colour spray, stunning several spiders allowing Rhetulas to slaughter them whilst they are motionless. Craven and Delreen combine forces and impose massive damage with a barrage of arrows and destroy the last of the foe. The party begins to mourn as they discover that Elril has passed away from spider venom. Sensing the value of the invoker within the fellowship, Bofor summons his god using a talisman hanging from his neck. A stoutly red headed dwarf appears and lays hands upon Elril, who takes a breath and re-awakens moments later, just as the dwarven god returns to his natural plane of existence. The party searches the room and decides to venture forth.

AD&D Adventure Log

Session 1 and 2

After traversing a complex tunnel network, they enter several other rooms where they are attacked by zombies. During the last furious battle, the party is almost beaten, however Delreen alters the course of battle. He raises his palm to the horde and utters divine words of power in invocation once again; " Bugger Offffff !!! The presence of divine power turns the undead and they flee in panic. The party wastes little time and takes advantage to slaughter the zombies before they have time to recover after fleeing in fear. After prevailing the last battle, the fellowship cast their gaze over the fallen zombies and prepare to loot the bodies. Thus far, they have traversed a considerable distance underground for several days and at this point several of the party members begin to notice that Craven is not seeming himself, as the innate weaknesses of a wood elf underground begin to become clear.......Is it time to get out.

And so the adventure continues.