Adventure 01-02 - The Purifying Flame Parts I-II

The Purifying Flame

Played July 26, 2004
Tale transcribed by Khyn Felloren, based on a true story).
Dateline Sharn, 25 Dravago, 998 YK.


Four adventurers had converged on Sharn, city of towers for various purposes. “Second-Story” Jory had lived there most of her life. A Dragon-marked member of House Tharask, her Mark of Finding aided her in her efforts to find things – things which people were unaware they no longer needed.

Kirin Meely, a member of the Greensingers, a druidic order with close contact with the fey, was pursing a thief in the employ of the Silver Flame. Apparently the Silver Flame desired an ancient key made of pure shadow – it had been in the possession of the Greensingers for generations. Obviously it was magical, but what it did was unknown. They sent Kirin out of the Eldeen Reaches to retrieve it. Together with her owl, Beak, and a Warforged monk, she journeyed from the largest forest of Khorvaire to the largest city, Sharn.

A Warforged monk who would answer to anything, no longer at the beck and call of man was returning to Sharn. He had been made in the final days of the Last War and never saw battle. Unsure of his role in life, he pursued many vocations after the war – he fell in with a circus where he was introduced to shadowdancing. He sought enlightenment at a monastery and learned control of his body, mind, and spirit. His teacher sent him to the Eldeen Reaches to commune with nature. Despite the best efforts of various druidic orders, he found difficulty becoming one with nature, though he did get wet. Heading back to Sharn anyways, he accompanied Kirin in her tracking efforts and offered to get her in touch with some friends of his – Jory and Qarion, who had assisted him in his awkward first days.

Qarion was an elf who hailed from the island-continent of Aerenal. The long-lived elves of Aerenal embraced death, with their religion centered around the worship of undying ancestors. A skilled warrior, Qarion was an apprentice of the deadly sword-and-dagger style of fighting. He had dedicated years studying magic and hoped to one day learn to combine the steel of armor and sword with the power of magic. In search of adventure, he had left his home of Aerenal and had settled recently in Sharn.

The Warforged monk, who found himself called everything from “Will” to “Metal Guy”, brought the four adventures together. He and Kirin had tracked the thief to Sharn but the city was large and their leads small. Jory used her contacts in House Tharask to track the thief down. It turned out that Patch, a half-orc in the house, knew of the thief. The thief was a mercenary – a silver-haired elven thief by the name of Kayva Tinieri. Patch was rather fond of her, though she had spurned his heart-felt advances. He gladly told Jory that Kayva could be found at the Tavern of the Black Anvil, asking only in return that she recite some of his heart-felt love poetry to Kayva in the hope of wooing her (“But hark, what light is that? It is you!”)


The Tavern was on the fancier side and rather empty – a little surprising considering it was early evening and a light rain had broken out. Kirin secured a pair of rooms for the group and bribed the innkeeper for the location of Kayva’s room. Metal Guy hovered in the background, keeping an eye on things. Jory tried making some small talk with Kayva, but it was Qarion who had more luck, as they were able to chat about ancestors. Jory then broke into Kayva’s room. They found notes indicating that she had dropped off the Key at a local church of the Silver Flame – one located in the lower levels of Sharn. Quickly taking some other goodies, Jory left the room and the four of them departed into the rainy night to look for the church.

However, it turned out Kayva had noticed her room had been broken into (a broken lock will do that) and she tailed the four adventurers, attacking them from behind while they were crossing one of Sharn’s many narrow bridges. She apparently remembered who it was who snuck upstairs, piercing Jory with an arrow. Beak distracted Kayva, allowing Kirin to launch sling stones. A launched dagger by Qarion did little good so he closed in with his sword. Metal Guy had little luck with a fury of blows, all of which Kayva easily dodged. Finally, the pierced Jory swung beneath the bridge with her rope and grappling hook and snuck up behind Kayva, stabbing her in the back. Almost a little too well, nearly killing her – and it would be nice to gain more information from her. Kirin patched Kayva up and used her druidic healing powers on Jory. The four dragged Kayva back to the tavern (and demanded their money back from the Halfling innkeeper – not feeling they got their money’s worth in their bribing).

There wasn’t too much additional information to get from Kayva – she told them she knew little about what the Church of the Silver Flame wanted with the Key – she had no idea what it did – it was just a job to her. Her contact was a young priest named Sevrin Nhall – she had given him the Key (and received her money) outside a small chapel of the Silver Flame – one which served the poor, diseased, and drunks of Sharn. He was apparently a member of an ultra-conservative faction of the Church – the Purifying Flame. They helped themselves to Kayva’s possessions (including some nice blades and bow) and left her alive but tied up.


The next morning the rains had increased as the adventurers made their way to the small chapel. The Church apparently rented two floors of a tower in a poor neighborhood of Sharn. Jory and Qarion posed as drunks while Kirin and Metal Guy tried their luck at posing as people looking for information on potions they had obtained from Kayva. Hopefully one group would find him. Kirin and MetalGuy asked the elderly Reverend Aldous about Sevrin Nhall. He offered to fetch Brother Nhall – a red-haired man who ran when he saw adventurers paying him a visit. He ran into his cell, slamming the door shut. As the four adventurers (and Beak) tried to break down the door, they heard grinding sounds – breaking the door down they saw the floor of his cell returning – it was an elevator, leading beneath the city. And apparently Nhall had escaped using it. Assisted by Reverend Aldous, they activated the elevator and followed him.

The elevator led to secret catacombs, dating back centuries. The once fancy mosaic walls had been dulled with age and the stone floors were covered with slime, muck, and a thin layer of water. MetalGuy lit his lamp and the band advanced. Ignoring a side passage they continued straight ahead. Jory and Qarion jumped back just in time to avoid falling into a pit which opened beneath them. Before the trapdoor snapped shut again they saw a huge, four-foot long rat at the bottom of the pit. Jory tied a rope around her and leapt across the pit. As soon as she did an ambush was launched – another giant rat jumped down on her, giving her a nasty, disease-ridden bite. On the other side of the pit a net landed on Qarion and MetalGuy – two nasty-looking humanoids, about a foot tall, had dropped the net from above. Qarion cut his way through, freeing them. Metal Guy launched a javelin at one, killing it. Kirin finished off the other with her bow. Untangled, Qarion fired his arrow at the rat, killing it.

After the battle Kirin healed some of Jory’s injuries, though it was obvious her bite would need to be looked at. Continuing on, the passage ended with a door covered with rat-images. Opening it, they found themselves in a temple dedicated to some sort of rat-god…


Loot, Experience, and other notes:
Kayva is a second level rogue, making her a Challenge Rating of 2, granting your group 600 experience points. For loot she had:

• Two potions of Cure Light Wounds (Kirin has them)
• Two potions of Bull’s Strength (I believe Xarion and Metal Guy have one each)
• A Masterwork Composite Short Bow – provides a +1 bonus to hit. Also allows the user to receive a strength bonus to damage, up to +1. Kirin has this.
• A Masterwork Short Sword – provides a +1 bonus to hit. Jory has this.
• A Masterwork Dagger – provides a +1 bonus to hit. Xarion has this.
• 12 gold pieces, 4 platinum pieces (40 gold piece value), and two moonstones (100 gp value) for a total value of 152 gold pieces. Dived by four it is worth 38 gold pieces each.
  

The pit had a Challenge Rating of 1. Overcoming it grants 300 experience points.

The Dire Rat had a challenge rating of 1/3. The two tiny humanoids were Jermlaine. Each had a challenge rating of ½. That makes this encounter worth 400 experience points. The Jermlaine had as loot:

• Four Bottles of Alchemist Fire – each is a splash attack doing 1d6 damage on a direct hit (and damages on the next round as well). I believe Xarion and Metal Guy each took one.

Total you guys earned 1300 experience points or 325 each, putting you just about a third of the way to second level (1000 experience points).

Part II

Played August 9, 2004
Tale transcribed by Khyn Felloren, based on a true story).
Dateline Sharn, 26 Dravago, 998 YK.


Our heroes examined the rat temple. It was ancient – centuries, if not millennia old. They had emerged on a rickety balcony that covered three of the four walls. Ten feet below was the temple proper, with crumbling pillars, a rat statue (with gemstone eyes) and a shallow stream. They were on the south side of the temple, with the balcony extending northwards on both walls. And both the east and west walls had doors on them. Smoke came from one of them. As they cautiously worked their way to it they saw blood on the floor – Sevrin’s perhaps?

The balcony was indeed old and a ten foot chunk of it was missing, with a narrow beam being the only bridge leading to the far side – and the smoke beyond – something being burned? Snagging a grappling hook on a rat-gargoyle above, Jory swung across – only to be attacked by another monstrous rat – this one was especially fierce, dripping acid from its mouth – a Horrid Rat, magically engineered by druids in ages past. Jory was badly wounded, knocked unconscious, and fell to the stagnant water below, face down. Kirin climbed down and poured a healing potion down Jory’s throat. Meanwhile the rat scampered over the bridge and attacked Qarion and Metal Guy. The two of them surrounded the rat and finished it off, though not before Qarion took a nasty bite, much like the diseased one Jory had suffered earlier.

They then examined the door – Beak heard something, that much was clear. Metal Guy attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to kick the door off its hinges. However, he did kick it open a little, exposing a tiny Jermlaine in an office getting ready to ambush them. Looking at his odds, he decided to surrender and told them that Sevrin had been using this area as a base, but he two-timed the Jermlaine, abandoning them and burning his papers. He just left into the sewers, accessed at the other end of the table. Our heroes finished putting out the fire and began going through what remained of his papers – one thing was clear – Sevrin had booked passage on a ship named the Orca.

The heroes left the temple, stopping just long enough to snag some rat-statue gemstones – which basically covered the cost of paying for a cleric to heal both Qarion and Jory of the rat infection they had contracted.


Healed, the band went down the plateau of Sharn to the port town. Jory and Qarion asked around about the Orca. Metal Guy took advantage of the time to ask Kirin about something that had been bothering him – what was the deal with small humans (and other species). The whole concept of children seemed rather… inefficient to him. It was how people produce more people? But they produced him at full-size. Kirin explained to Metal Guy the reasoning and advantages as best she could. Meanwhile, Jory and Qarion had found a drunken member of the Orca crew – a drunken half-elf claiming to be the first mate – named Gigli (pronounced “gee-lee”). He was rather taken with Jory (which might not have been much of a compliment, considering his intoxicated state) and offered to show her the Orca – after forgetting he had turned down passage to her earlier… Though he couldn’t find any crewmembers to row him back to the Orca, which would be setting out later, with the tide. Fortunately, the remaining three heroes were available for rowing duty.


Aboard the tiny caravel that was the Orca, they made a few discoveries. First, her full crew was not yet aboard – the captain, Gigli, and four sailors were aboard – another eight or so sailors were completing their leave. Second, their passenger, Sevrin, was aboard in the tiny forward cabin. Finally, Gigli was not the first mate – he was the cook (and he also passed out).

Sadly, Captain Curg was not inclined to let them meet with her passenger, who popped his head out the door of his cabin. A battle broke out, with Jory getting a boat ready for departure while the others tried to take Sevrin (alive preferably). They also found themselves under attack from the crew – much to Kirin’s disappointment, who had tried to convince them to let them be. Qarion set fire to the mainmast and rigging using a bottle of alchemist fire which distracted the crew. Eventually they knocked Sevrin out (though Metal Guy took a beating in the process). Jory grabbed his sea chest (which contained the Shadow Key) and band escaped from the Orca, dodging arrows all the way…

Loot, Experience, and other notes:

The Horrid Rat was Challenge Rating 1, worth 300 experience points.

The Jermlaine was worth 150 experience points. (Though he wasn’t killed he was sufficiently intimidated, giving you the experience.)

• Between the gemstone eyes and the cost of healing Jory and Qarion you netted 100 gold pieces.
  

Sevrin was Challenge Rating 2, worth 600 experience points. His loot of interest:

• 1 Longbow (Composite/+1) – gives a +1 strength bonus to damage when used by someone with at least 12 strength
• 1 Mithral Shirt – very light chain mail shirt
• 1 Onyx – 50 gold piece value
• 5 White Pearl – 10 gold piece value each
• Divine spell scrolls (Kirin can use some of these) - 2 Scroll (Bless), 2 Scroll (Bull's Strength), 2 Scroll (Command), 2 Scroll (Cure Light Wounds), 1 Scroll (Cure Moderate Wounds), 1 Scroll (Hold Person), 1 Scroll (Spiritual Weapon), 1 Scroll (Summon Mosnter I)
  

Each sailor was Challenge Rating ½. You killed two, worth 300 experience points.

The Captain was Challenge Rating 1 and the two remaining sailors were Challenge Rating ½. They weren’t defeated but you did escape them with your goal, so we’ll call that worth half the normal award for defeating them in combat, for another 300 experience points.

Total experience gained: 1650, or 413 each. Combined with last adventure brings you to a total of 738, almost three quarters of the way to second level. (yay!)
Total loot for the two adventures was 63 gold pieces each. Feel free to buy some goodies…