A return to the cleric campaign! Previous sessions here.
Try to add DM Notes like this.
The current state of the Ossuary. Each result is the mechanical class (in-game fiction/flavor):
Ossuary Pilgram Table (roll 1d6)
1 | MU (magicians), St. Ulther
2 | Fighter (sailors), St. Ulther
3 | Fighter (fanatics), St. Serene
4 | Cleric (zealots), St. Serene
5 | none
6 | none
DM Notes: So when I rolled 3d6, I got a 5,5,6 (3 actual weeks have passed since we last played) which means that no pilgrims show up to the abbey this time. And I roll 1d6 for each current pilgrim to see if anyone has left on a 1 or 2. None do.
As it stands two MU followers of St. Ulther remain at the abbey ready to embark on any adventure the PCs might have for them.
I just generate the followers using the Old School Essentials NPC generator here (also good for characters). And Oblate Samuel shaken from the death of his friend Leo, is back to being somewhat normal.
 |
Brother Cadfael from the Cadfael series one
of the clerics takes their name from (I need to watch it) |
The clerics' first decision is what spells they will pray for today. The Reliquary allows a little extra bonus when they pray to various portions of it provide they have placed recovered monks' items there. The portion they have powered allows them 1 save throw re-roll (The BENEFICENCE of AZLEN).The second decision is to return once more to Dyson's Tower to retrieve a third saint for the Ossuary rounding it out, which will allow a lot of pilgrims, and very much in the Abbot's wishes, who they like.
DM Notes: Since IRL weeks had passed, I allowed the clerics to at least have a standard pack of starting supplies, so they made one last stop to rally both Follower Lunell and Gersia. And after a passioned plea, collected Oblate Samuel.
DM Notes: Also they accused the Prior of being an agent of Orcus. Since time has passed, gossip as spread. The Prior is not too happy. They want to get the hell out of town.
At the Goblin Camp
The approach to the camp is pretty standard now, they prefer the entrance to the south in order to sneak past the goblin camp. The clerics' aim was to return to the 1st Level and perhaps recover one more saint they sure were buried in the area with St. Serene and Ulther.
DM Note: Because this area is almost always the start, I think its just better to sorta procedurize it. The PCs just have to have one method of surpassing the goblins on watch and we just make one check. In the furture I might try to alter the weather or add a patrol-- just to switch it up so the PCs never have *perfect* information about what's going to happen.
The trip back to this location except for a bizarre ankle-deep fog covering the ground. They scrounge the scene of their last battle and fine a set of chainmail and the door leading to hopefully the last saint. But it was not, instead it was a crypt full of skeletons seemingly dumped without proper rites and full of spite for the living. This time, my players remembered their clerics could turn undead and short work was made of these skeletons. With the use of holy water, they scrub the floor clean of the mark of Orcus.
DM Notes: Maybe should have made the skeletons a bit harder to turn since they were in the radius of a mark of Orcus, but whatever. The PCs felt the threat.
Level 2
This level too is familiar ground to the PCs. They decide to bust up a goblin dice game in an attempt to find some information about the location of human saints. Brother Phellius offers up his newly won chain mail and dices against the goblins-- winning. The clerics learn another goblin, Snakesplitter, is being held on some charge and maybe the PCs could take them off the goblins' hands since no-one likes him. They were also warned to watch their back.
After leaving, the PCs asked Follower Lunell to Hold Portal the door.
DM Notes: I need a better quick dice game for D&D other than roll 2d6 who gets the highest. I bet Nate Treme has one.
A turn later they find the hastily assembled baracade Snakesplitter is barracaded in, but the four goblin guard want 100 coin as a "transfer fee". The clerics, being pious men rich in virture, are broke. So Redcap offers to make some new gambling dice out of their knucklebones. A fight begins and ends in the third round when Redcap is beaten by a Brother Cadfael's mace and moral breaks. The remain goblins just make new gambling dice out of his knucklebones.
Snakesplitter offers to come with them simply for beating Redcap to death. And gives them sass about first trying to convert him to being a monk.
Level 3
Snakesplitter leads them down a different set of stairs to Level 3 than before. But before realizing what is happening they are suprised by an ambush/gang/thieves guild of robber flies! Snakesplitter avoids the on slaught as does Follower Gersia, but Follower Lunell, Brother Cadfael, and Brother Pheallius are on the defensive taking hits each. But its poor Oblate Samuel that met his fate-- natural 20 and 5 on the damage roll. Robber fly basically ripped his arm off.
DM Notes: This encounter suprised me with how brutal it was. Also, I think I need to have some standard layouts ready for battle. I really like having tactile set up with objectives and "terrain". But maybe since I have 2 players, I should just got more free form.
DM Notes: Also this is the 2nd Oblate who died. They are supposed to be wards of the Abbey, so someone might come looking for them-- 1:6 they were connected to someone at Stronglaw Keep.
After a few Cure Light Wounds, Snakeplitter showed the clerics a clue to what they came for-- a statue of the Saint of Sleep.
And because the DM, me, forgot the sheet with the riddle and we were at our 2 hour limit, that was game for the night!
DM Notes: If you get anything from this, then I hope its the idea that a good game of D&D can be done in 2 hours. Not need to pull out 6, 8, or 10 hour sessions. It just requires density of choice to be high. And that is what is nice about this "mini-megadungeon" format.
