Return of the Runelords, Book 1: Secrets of Roderic's Cove [IC]

[Blackhawk101]

“Thank goodness! Is everyone alright?” exclaims Alandra.
She moves around checking on each party member. She doesn’t have medical training so she only tries to comfort the injured by assuring them that they “Will be okay” without any actual assistance.

Spoiler: crunch

Show

Mesmerist Rider:

• Psychosomatic Surge Cult Trick is in place on all party members except Borek and Freida. Trigger=taking damage. 1d8+1 THP. Duration 1 hr.
• False Healing : Active on all party members . 11THP. Duration =3 hrs.

[lostsole31]

Courtesy of Alandra's preemptive measures, nobody is actually wounded, though Feiya's fortifications have been expended. Other than that, Brennan is weakened from poison, and Feiya is exhausted, sapping her strength and agility.

[Blackhawk101]

“Poor Freiya is exhausted. Let’s rest here for a bit until she is better able to protect herself .”says Alandra with a bit of Motherly concern.
“Lunch break!”
Alandra will munch on a carrot and offer one to the dragon and anyone else who wants one.

Spoiler: crunch

Show

Mesmerist Rider:

• Psychosomatic Surge Cult Trick is in place on all party members except Borek and Freida. Trigger=taking damage. 1d8+1 THP. Duration 1 hr.
• False Healing : Active on all party members except Freiya. 11THP. Duration =3 hr

[lostsole31]

Ziggy will definitely take carrots.

How long does Alandra take for a break?

[Blackhawk101]

Alandra will rest until Freiya feels better. About an hour.

[lostsole31]

After an hour, Feiya is no longer exhausted, but is fatigued, but willing to continue since there can't be much more of this house left to explore.

[Blackhawk101]

“We will check the room where we defeated the attic whisperer and then check the next door to the East.”
Alandra smiles at her group.
”Freiya, hang back from the door check since you don’t have any protection.”

[lostsole31]

It takes only a minute to search the room clear ... nothing of interest in there.

The next door to the east is checked and opened, revealing a set of bunk beds that have fallen apart and crumpled against the south wall of this room. A wooden chest of toys is turned on its side, spilling moldy stuffed animals, wooden blocks, and neglected toys across the floor.

[Blackhawk101]

“Take a few moments to check this child’s room. Stay on your guard.” cautions Alandra as she daintily shoves debris aside with her foot.

[lostsole31]

No sooner does Ranghen and Ziggy move into the room than an exoskeleton giant cockroach crawls out from within the ruins of each bunk bed!

R1T26: With the speed of youth, Ziggy zooms in and around from the north, and spits due south to wet both wacky waterbugs. Red takes 4 acid, but Blue - protected by the bedding - only takes 1 acid. "Dead buggiethz!" she shouts in alarm.

R1T24: Ranghen steps up to help her foster daughter with her sickle, cracking the shell and doing 4 mod.

R1T22: Rodrigo gets into a different combat stance than Alandra has yet seen. He steps right up to Blue and tosses his tanto (the funny dagger he carries) in a stylized way that does 10 mod.

R1T17: Feiya commands Daji to stay and then moves into the room. She shoots a black beam at Blue that misses.

R1T16: Bořek drops his guisarm and moves in while drawing his flail, and then splatter-combusts Blue.

R1T8: Alandra, what do you do?

[Blackhawk101]

Not to play favorites, Alandra gives her fanatical stare to Feiya. Alandra adopts a defensive marshal stance.

Spoiler: crunch

Show

SA:Fanatical stare
SwA: Battle Mantra +1 AC

[lostsole31]

R1T8: Not to play favorites, Alandra gives her fanatical stare to Feiya. Alandra adopts a defensive marshal martial stance.

R1T5: The exo-roach bites Ziggy for 1 mod, though doesn't look like it.

R1T3: Daji delays ...

End Round One, Begin Round 2 ..

R2T26: Ziggy gives just the cutest little growl at the exo-roach's mindless temerity and closes, the exo-roach unable to bite past her scales. She snaps with a bite, and then with a little claw completely opens up the undead until it combusts and turns to ash.

Combat Ends!

The room is searched for a minute or so, and nothing of interest is here.

[Blackhawk101]

“Good work everyone especially Ziggy!” Gushes Alandra enthusiastically.
“Let’s move on to the next room to the South.”

Spoiler: crunch

Show

Mesmerist Rider:

• Psychosomatic Surge Cult Trick is in place on all party members except Borek and Freida. Trigger=taking damage. 1d8+1 THP. Duration 1 hr.
• False Healing : Active on all party members except Freiya. 11THP. Duration =3 hr

[lostsole31]

The door is checked and opened. Off-color rectangles on the moldering walls show that there were once many frames hanging on the walls of this room. A selection of pens and brushes, as well as a silver-capped ink jar, lie on the floor amid the remains of a desk.

[Blackhawk101]

​“Spread out and look for clues!”

[lostsole31]

In addition to being a courageous man who led others to a new settlement, and a privateer who patrolled the Varisian Gulf to keep it free from pirates, Roderic was also an accomplished cartographer. He created numerous maps of the gulf and the rivers he explored that fed into it.

There is reputed to be something called “Roderic’s map,” but that's not here. Alandra happens to know off-hand that Roderic's map - a map of the cove and its surrounding areas - now resides in city hall in the town's archives.

Sir Roderic's ghost manifests again, the power of the manifestation is felt enough for Feiya and Brennan to come down to see as well. He says the following in a tired, labored voice:

“My map. They took my map. It holds the key. To the vault. Baraket will control them. It will control you! I should have taken the gauntlets, but I fled. I was a coward. You must be brave. You must endure where I did not. The vault. It lies still in the vault. You must save my Cove. Save. My. Cove.”

[Blackhawk101]

“I think I know the map of which he speaks. There is a map of the area drawn by Sir Roderick located in the town archives! Gang, we need to do a little breaking and entering!” Alandra’s eyes glow with barely concealed excitement.

[lostsole31]

"You are the heroes of my beloved Cove now," he says before disapparating.

[Blackhawk101]

“Let’s check out the last room on this level and then call it a day. We can decide after discussing our findings with Audrahani to explore the stone cabin in the woods or to secure the map first!”

[lostsole31]

The last door is checked and opened. Sagging shelves, one of which has partially pulled free from the wall, line the walls of this room, set with spools of thread, boxes of needles, moldy scraps of cloth, bolts of decaying fabric, and various types of shears. A round box of soiled yarn rests on a worktable along the north wall, and a dress form lays propped in the corner.

[Blackhawk101]

“Take a look around but be on your guard.”

Spoiler: crunch

Show

Mesmerist Rider:

• Psychosomatic Surge Cult Trick is in place on all party members except Borek and Feiya. Trigger=taking damage. 1d8+1 THP. Duration 1 hr.
• False Healing : Active on all party members except Feiya. 11THP. Duration =3

[lostsole31]

With the walking wounded staying outside, the four of you begin a search of the room.

"Did you hear that?" asks Ranghen.

"Momma, why ith thtuff in the room shaking?" asks Ziggy.

Begin Round One ...

R1T24: "Haunt incoming. Back out if you can't fight it!" says Ranghen, casting a spell on her hand, causing it to emit a warm golden glow.

R1T23: Alandra, what do you do? You didn't notice anything, and there's nothing immediately targetable.

[Blackhawk101]

Alandra will back out of the room all the while staring at Ranghen. She takes a martial stance.

Spoiler: crunch

Show

FrA:Battle Mantra +1 AC
SA: Fanatical stare at Ranghen
MA: move to hallway 5’ West and 10’ North or until she has a clear space to stand.

Mesmerist Rider:

• Psychosomatic Surge Cult Trick is in place on all party members except Borek and Feiya. Trigger=taking damage. 1d8+1 THP. Duration 1 hr.

[lostsole31]

R1T23: Alandra takes a martial stance and backs out of the room, all the while staring at Ranghen.

R1T22: Daji yips in alarm when Alandra moves quickly up the hallway.

R1T19: Rodrigo shrugs and backs out.

R1T17: The items in the room come to life and chaotically fly through the air, slashing at and tangling everyone in the area ... which includes out into the hallway! Flurries of needles fly about like straw caught in a dust devil, while scissors and shears flap dangerously through the area. Strips of cloth wrap around people’s heads, and spools of thread and yarn spread like ever-shifting webs. Creatures in the room and area out to the limits of the hallway to the north get sliced and poked, some of which gets overborne by Alandra's psychosomatic surge: Ziggy takes 5 mod + 3 THP; Feiya takes 7; Rodrigo takes 6 + 2 THP; Bořek and Daji take 5, and gain 3 and 5 THP (respectively); Ranghen takes 4 + entangled + 3 THP; Alandra takes 3 + 8 THP.

Ranghen was entangled as cloth, threads, and unraveling balls of yarn swirl around her.

R1T16: Bořek takes out a glass vial and throws it against the wall next to him. The blessed powers of the holy water splashes outward to flash against some of the bits and bobs to do 6 PE. He backs up a few feet.

R1T13: "Daji, clear out!" says Feiya. She reaches her hand to the side where some things swirl around and lets loose with a black beam that disintegrates multiple pieces and impacts the haunt for 10 disruption.

R1T12: Ziggy turns and spits at a sewing machine and whatever is flying in the way. Some of the things float out of way, but Ziggy still does 4 acid.

R1T11: Daji comes out of delay to do as told, getting away out of the area.

End Round One, Begin Round 2 ...

R24T24: Ranghen touches the things entangling her and her power discharges with a bright flash and everything drops out of the air ... the haunt destroyed. For good or only for now, none can tell.

Combat Ends!

[Blackhawk101]

Alandra untangles herself and carefully fixes her hair.
“Everyone alright? Check yourselves and then the room.”

​Alandra will check the room for anything of interest.

[lostsole31]

In the round box containing the moldering yarn is a concealed space; inside are five bars of gold, each worth 200 gp.

[Blackhawk101]

Alandra bounces up and down excited.“Yes! Now we have enough to outfit the group for our upcoming expedition: The Hero of Roderick’s Cove Journey to the Stone Cabin! …eh…It’s working title.” she shrugs

“Let’s head back to town and try to sell what we acquired.”
”Not the sword case though. I think we might need that.”

[lostsole31]

Ranghen says, "I don't know if that haunt will be back ... or whatever was creating the water-sound in the closet below. We should be sure to let folks know that this wreck is still haunted and dangerous."

[Blackhawk101]

Alandra nods in agreement.

[lostsole31]

Where to now?