Episode 46
"The Pit and the Golem"
(c) 2002 by Matt Grossman and J. Sage Schreiner

Tron, a desperately lucky elf, Matt Grossman
Norel, a battle-scarred ranger, Tom Morin
Nigil, a mysterious noble from a distant land, Kevin Osborn
Tarilian, an elvish troubador of unsurpassed skill, Sonny McKnire
All others, J. Sage Schreiner


The party prepares to descend into Nightfang Spire yet again.

Tarilian: I have a plan to take the gibbering mouther...
Nigil: Keep it to yourself. Say, can you use wands?
Tarilian: Um, yes.
Nigil: Take this. I think it shoots Magic Missile.
Laurallie: Should I cast Invisibility to Undead when we get down
there?
Tron: Why don't you cast it now? They might try to ambush us on the
way down.

The cleric casts the spell, and the party heads into the darkness. As
they proceed through the first level, they see a zombie "janitor"
mopping the floor. Two skeletons lean against the walls nearby and
watch.

Norel: Hey, these guys have a union.
Tron: Can't... resist... mindless... carnage... [spork spork spork]
Undead: [thud thud thud]
Nigil: Nice work Tron, you just negated the spell.
Tron: Doh!
Laurallie: Obad-Hai, give me strength...
Nigil: From now on, Tron, any decisions you make go through the whole
party, understand? If you have an idea, don't act on it, tell us
about it first.
Tron: Bah.

The party reaches the fifth level of the dungeon and heads towards
where they hear a "furnace". What they find is a huge room deep with
drifts of ash and charred bone. In the center of the room is a pillar
of fire. It is very hot, but does not seem to emit any smoke or use 
up any air.

Norel: It must be magic.
Nigil: Bah. Foul sorcery.

There is a door on the far side of the room, and the party heads for
it, skirting the pillar of flame. Suddenly:

Fire Elemental: Raaargh! [bamph]
Norel: Ow! Hot! Fire!
Tron: Ouch!

It turns out that the "pillar of fire" is a huge fire elemental. It
lunges at the party, doing great damage with its flaming body.

Norel: Eat steel! [stab hack] My enchanted blades harm it!
Nigil: Take that, monster! [poke] Hey, my sword works too.
Tron: Have at you! Take that! Bah. My scimitar does not bite.
Laurallie: I am a priestess of fire and air -- Obad Hai commands
you, creature of fire!
Fire Elemental: Rar.
Laurallie: It was worth a try.

Tarilian strays too close to the monster.

Tarilian: Hang on guys, I'll haste you! (casts spell)
Fire Elemental: [fwoosh]
Tarilian: Aaah! Fire! Help! Ouch! Stop, drop and roll!
Laurallie: Feel the wrath of Obad-Hai! [bzort]
Fire Elemental: Rooorgh!
Tron: How about some water, fire? [sploosh]
Fire Elemental: (ignores the contents of Tron's waterskin)
Tron: That didn't work either.
Norel: Suck it down! [stab stab stab stab stab]
Fire Elemental: [swat]
Norel: Ow! Ow! Fire! Ow! Put me out!
Tron: Hang on, I'll put it out! [sssssss]
Nigil: Tron, if I catch on fire do _not_ put it out, understand? I'll
take care of that myself. Or just burn.
Tarilian: Eat Magic Missile, monster! [bzort] Hoody-hoo!

While the bard and cleric provide spell support from the background,
the fighter and ranger wade into the monster and soon destroy it. All
of the party are badly wounded, but they decide to stick around and
finish exploring the level. In this chamber they find a number of
half-melted coins, and a shield in good condition. They explore
further and find two shafts leading down into darkness. They are at
opposite sides of the tower. There are rungs set into the walls, and
it looks as though they go down much farther than one level.

Tarilian: This could be it.
Norel: Maybe. We need to rest up before we try this again though.

They go back up to the roof of the tower and rest for the rest of the
day. The next day, healed up and refreshed, they head back down.

Norel: This shaft looks as though it is less traveled. Let's use that
one.

They climb down the rungs in the shaft. It is apparent that the shaft
leads down many hundreds of feet, into the rock beneath the spire.
The shaft ends in a small room, with one door leading out. The door
opens onto a ledge that runs around the rim of a deep pit. The bottom
is hidden in shadows, but the ceiling is only some twenty feet above
their heads. From the darkness of the pit comes the sound of
rustling.

Tarilian: What foul creature do you suppose that could be?
Nigil: I don't know and I don't want to find out.
Laurallie: Send Tron. [snicker]

They rope themselves together for safety and follow the ledge around
the pit. The pit is barely wide enough for the elves, with their
superior night vision, to see the far side. In the midst of the pit
is a column of rock, and on top of the rock is a pedestal. There is
something shiny on the pedestal.

Nigil: I bet that's the key!

The party comes up with several improbable plans to retrieve the key.
Finally, Laurallie casts Gaseous Form on Tron, and the scout flies
over to the pillar. Once there he sees that the pedestal is carved in
the form of a dragon, clutching a strangely shaped key in its mouth.
The scout can tell that there is a trap triggered by weight on the top
of the pillar, so he drifts to the side of the pillar and materializes
there. First, he attaches his rope to a grappling hook.

Nigil: That hook won't be able to find a purchase on this rock.
Tron: I know. [fling]
Norel: Ow! Dammit, Tron!
Tron: Oops.
Nigil: That reminds me of playing lawn-dart wars when I was a kid. Norel,
you better have that looked at.

The scout disarms the trap then steps onto the top of the pillar.
There is a sharp blue flash of light and heat.

Laurallie: Oh gosh, it looks like Tron was vaporized. Woe.
Tron: No, no, I'm ok!
Laurallie: Darn.

Suddenly there is another explosion that engulfs the top of the
pillar. Tron escapes the blast by diving over the side and hanging on
by his fingertips.

Norel: Where did that come from?
Tarilian: Fire in the hole!

A second fireball flies across the pit and explodes in the midst of
the party. The party's archers return fire blindly into the
darkness. Tarilian creates dancing lights and sends them flying
across the pit. They briefly illuminate a mohrg.

Norel: Easy shot. [twang twang] Hit it.

The mohrg ducks out of site.

Norel: That'll keep his head down.

Meanwhile, Tron has crawled out on top of the pillar and retrieved
what appears to be a key. It is shaped like a stylized
dragon. It looks as though there are places for more parts to be
attached to it. Tron puts the key in his pouch, then discovers that
the rope that he had just tossed across the pit has been charred into
uselessness by the fireballs.

Norel: It's ok, the grappling hook survived. (ties a rope onto it)
Catch!
Tron: Ow!
Norel: Now we're even.

Tron rejoins the party, and they continue along the ledge, keeping a
watchful eye open for more enemies. The ledge runs past a door.

Norel: Let's see what's past this door. We can deal with that mohrg
later.

The party goes through the door and finds themselves in an area of
carved corridors. They head down one corridor and find what appears
to be a cylindrical vault. It is sealed and they cannot open it. There
is a keyhole in the stone near it.

Tarilian: That's probably the vault. It looks as though there are
some more parts to this key.
Nigil: Who designs these things? I mean, suppose Gulthias wanted to
open the vault in a hurry?
Tarlian: Perhaps he has magical means?

They go down another corridor and find many doors.

Norel: One of these must lead through to the other shaft. If we could
find it, we wouldn't have to worry about that pit.

They go up to one of the doors. Tron listens at it and hears just a
rattling sound, like pebbles falling. The scout opens the door.

Marble Golem: [crunch smash]
Tron: Yipe!

A huge golem, apparently made of marble and covered with fine writing
in many scripts, looms in the door. The party attacks the creature
with their weapons, but it seems very resistant to damage. It also
appears to be immune to spells. Its powerful fists do a lot of damage
to the party. They decide to withdraw.

Tron: Game over, man, game over!
Tarilian: I think a tactical repositioning is in order here. I'll
provide covering fire with my wand. [click click] Come on. Shoot,
dammit, shoot! Goddamn halfing knock-offs.
Norel: Feet, don't fail me now!

The golem pursues. It appears to have the power to slow party members
by magic.

Nigil: Heeeellllppp meeeeee!
Tarilian: (casts Haste on the fighter)
Nigil: A gentleman of Keoland always knows when to run! (sprints past
the party)
Golem: (lumbers forwards menacingly)

The party flees from the monster back towards the pit. Unfortunately they
have to slow down once they get onto the narrow ledge. There is no room
for Tron and Nigil to follow the others, so they run onto the ledge to
the left of the door, while the rest of the party ends up on the right
of the door. The golem runs up to the edge of the pit and stops.

Tarilian: (casts Grease on the floor around the golem)
Golem: (wobbles but doesn't fall over)
Tarilian: Dammit!

With the golem standing in the door, they party cannot join up.
Instead Tron and Nigil begin to move around the edge of the pit, hoping to
circle around.

Tron: Careful, there's a mohrg around he...
Mohrg: (paralyzes Tron)
Tron: I gan fwee muh wips. Urg.
Nigil: (grabs Tron and puts him on the ledge behind him, then attacks
the monster)

Suddenly a fireball flies out of the darkness and explodes around Tron
and Nigil. Tron is knocked unconscious and bleeds heavily. The Mohrg
in front of them appears to be undamaged by the burst of magical fire.

Norel: They need help! [twang twang twang]
Laurallie: I can shoot too! [twang twang twang]
Tarilian: I'll use my wand! [fizzle] What's wrong with this thing?
[clang clang clang bzort] That's better.
Mohrg: (railing death)

Nigil: I'll have to try and bandage him. Oh wait, that's right, I've
got a potion of healing.

He feeds the potion of healing to the scout and Tron is soon on his feet.

The main group of the party circles around the pit and the two parties
move to join up. They see that there is a room opening onto the pit.
As the party is preparing to join together, another fireball explodes
in their midst.

Tron: Urk. [thud]
Norel: I hate these freakin' mohrgs! (charges into the room and melees
a mohrg)
Nigil: I've got your back! (charges into the room and melees the other
mohrg hiding there)
Laurallie: (runs around the back of the party and heals Tron) The gods
must be sparing you for a particularly unpleasant fate.
Tron: Humph.
Tarilian: I'll blast them with my wand! [fizzle] Ferk ding blast!
Mohrg: (paralyzes Nigil)
Norel: (now flanked by the monsters) Uh-oh.
Tron: Oathbow, I swear to kill that dude! [twang]
Oathbow: Okay.
Mohrg: Urk. [thud]
Norel: Siddown! [spuck]
Mohrg: [thud]

Suddenly another mohrg looms in a doorway. It is a giant among its
kind. Laurallie casts a Wall of Fire, blocking the doorway. The
mohrg bursts through the flames, but is badly wounded and quickly
killed. Another mohrg charges through the fire, but it is also quickly killed.
Amazingly, the party has survived again.

Tron: I sense the hand of Pholtus in this. Pholtus works in mysterious
ways.
Laurallie: Blah blah blah.

They search the room, retrieving some treasure, then head back along
the ledge, up the hole and finally back up to the top of the spire.

Tarilian: That's some climb.
Norel: Get ready to do it again tomorrow.
Laurallie: At least I'm not the only one without eyebrows.

TO BE CONTINUED...