Difference between revisions of "Iron Will, Part 2"

Latest revision as of 12:20, 7 February 2008

About the Saga

Angry toys -- iron and other, nastier golems -- threaten the Blackrazors at every turn as they explore another Star Cairn. Terrek Redknife joins the guild.

Note: This adventure is based on TSR’s *Star Cairns* module written by Sean Reynolds.

Timeframe

• Greyhawk Date: Sunsebb 27, CY 587
• Real World Date: Nov. 6, 1998
• Blackrazor Guild Sagas|Read other Blackrazor Guild Sagas]]

Cast of Characters

• Kalib Ironfist, cleric of Trithereon
• D'klar Ironforge, dwarven war cleric
• Terrek Redknife, barbarian with a death wish
• Tanevir Calywyn, elven spellsword and leader of the Blackrazor Guild
• Mist Silvershroud, elven ranger
• Gaiseric, mundane rogue

Notable Quotes

• "Scrappy, we need to talk ... There’s two things you need to do. First, check for traps – and you did that good. But you also need to check for locks, so that we can that way we can avoid embarrassing little mishaps like this..." -- Kalib Ironfist

What Has Come Before

The Blackrazors have returned to the Ablor Alz in search of another of the famed Star Cairns. Unlike their last adventure, where the cairn had been overrun by bandits, this cairn was filled with angry toys – specifically iron and other forms of golems. One of these golems escaped from its lair and destroyed the village of Ironcrest, about two days ride southwest from Storm Keep.

The Blackrazors -- Kalib Ironfirst, D'klar, Terrek, Tanevir, Mist and Gaiseric -- have just explored one of the cairn’s many sections and are preparing to open a secret door in the main entrance way. It is now the 27th of Sunsebb, C.Y. 587. Read the previous saga, "Iron Will, pt. 1"

• Read the previous saga

The Saga

Sunsebb 27, CY 587

The Locked Door

Scrappy bent down and looked at the edges of the now-visible secret door. "It pivots in the center …" he said, tracing his fingers around the door’s edges. "And there’s a wire at the top. Looks like a trap."

Kalib approached the door and touched it with a hand. I can take this, he thought, and then backed up. The others withdrew to a safe distance as Kalib ran full speed into the door. He hit it – knocking it off its hinges but failing to get into the next room.

The door had been locked.

Kalib’s smashing attack on the door triggered a trap, which sent a cloud of darts in his direction. Three struck him as poisonous gas drifted down, but fortunately he was able to hold his breath long enough to make it into the room beyond the door.

As he stood, gasping, he said. "Scrappy, we need to talk."

The thief looked at him.

"There’s two things you need to do. First, check for traps – and you did that good. But you also need to check for locks, so that we can that way we can avoid embarrassing little mishaps like this…"

The thief nodded his head and hid a smile.

An Ancient Prisoner

The room beyond held a sleeping Balklunish man – who, when awoken by a dispel magic spell cast by Tanevir – informed the Blackrazors in a old-fashioned accent that his name was Xaxe and that he was a merchant in Greyhawk.

"The men who captured me – they were Oerdians. But strange ones who worshipped the old Suel ways. They said … they said they wanted to recreate the Invoked Devastation. They made some mention of a great comet crashing to earth…" he said and trailed off. "I don’t remember anything after that. Could you escort me back to Greyhawk?"

Kalib and Tanevir recognized the comet as the beginning of the Age of Sorrows – meaning that this man before them – who was dress in Balklunish robes but had a metallic tinge to his skin – was several hundred years old.

"We will escort you back – if you can wait outside the cairn until we are finished," Kalib said.

Looks like a trap

Further into the lair, the Blackrazors came across a small raised dias with a hole carved in the center – it appeared to be some sort of a privy. Terrick advanced, looked down the hole and was immediately grappled by a black tentacle which tried to pull him down the 2-1/2 foot diameter hole. When it couldn’t, it used Terrick as a battering ram to attack Kalib.

The cleric counter attacked, but his attacks seemed to have no affect. As the thing continued to batter the ‘Razors, Tanevir cast dispel magic, which failed to work. Then, realizing that Kalib’s attacks were having no affect, the elf tried using a lance of disruption, which destroyed the tentacle instantly.

The party moved on.

Stone and Steel

The Blackrazors then moved into a room with three gigantic, golem-sized chairs. Each of the chairs radiated some sort of alteration magic. "You should sit on that," Kalib said, half-jokingly, to Mist Silvershroud, the Blackrazor’s new elven ranger.

The latest addition to the Blackrazors thought about it, and then said, "ok."

He sat on the chair … and was instantly turned to stone. Tanevir then cast dispel magic on the petrified Mist, who found himself transformed into a stone golem. This transformation rocked the nature-loving warrior’s sanity, but he managed to hold himself together long enough to help his friends fight off yet another iron golem.

Sanity's End

After Mist’s transformation and the subsequent defeat of the iron golem, the Blackrazors found a room to the north of the complex. Terrek entered the room and say a fiery, red-skinned god surrounded by volcanoes painted on the wall. They eyes were glowing with a faint red light, and as the Suel barbarian saw this, he thought a quick prayer to Kord – and was instantly hit by a stream of lava.

He ran from the room and the Blackrazors – tired of golems, tentacles and worse – left the cairn.

Return to the Surface

Outside of the deathtrap, they met up with Xaxe who had survived the last few hours outside without much difficulty. The Blackrazors quickly set up their tent, posted guards, and went to sleep.

Midway through the night, as D’klar and "Stone Mist" stood watch, their encampment was attacked by bird-women. The horrendous creatures – harpies – screamed their siren song as they crashed into the two guards. Inside the sound-proof tent, the rest of the Blackrazors slept on unknowingly.

The song enchanted D’klar who stood motionless as the creatures attacked him. Mist, knowing he was impervious to their attacks in his new stone form, opened the door to the tent and threw the dwarf inside. As luck would have it Tanevir’s owl familiar, Nightwing, returned from his rounds of hunting just in time to see his master’s new student fending off the harpies.

The owl sent a mental warning to Tanevir, which roused the elf. Meanwhile, the sound of a dwarf in plate-mail hitting the floor of the tent was enough to awaken most of the other Blackrazors. Finally, after the warriors stumbled outside, they were able to drive off the harpies. With the threat ended, the groggy adventurers returned to bed with dreams of gold dancing in their heads.

Sunsebb 28, CY 687

Restoration

Aesop was more than a little surprised when he checked in on the Blackrazors on the morning of Sunsebb 28th, C.Y. 587 using their crystal ball and saw Mist’s new stone body. Rousing the terramancer Sven, Aesop teleported himself and his fellow mage to the Star Cairn. Once there, Sven was able to use his elemental staff to transform Mist into his flesh and blood form. Aesop – not particularly interested in fighting off iron-skinned horrors – then wisely departed for Greyhawk via his trusty teleportation spell.

Experience & Loot

• No experience and/or loot is available for this saga.