Session 27: Hunt for the Throne Pt.2 Report
General Summary
Picking right up where they left off in Tloques-Popolocas' tomb, the Rat Pack debated where they should go next. They decided to continue east down the unexplored hallway. It eventually led them to a staircase where the ceiling had collapsed. Vraky and Kouvian tried to clear a path, but disturbing the stones only caused another cave-in that nearly buried them. With no other choices, they were forced to backtrack.
Moving beyond this chamber, they enter another hallway that ends with another brass door, this one with a depiction of the moon, and has a statue standing next to it. The statue was of a warrior with a sword on his back. He held an empty tray up as if offering it to the gods. Azid was more interested in his obsidian eyes and used a mage hand to pluck one hanging loosely from its socket.
No longer interested in the statue, the party moves through the moon doors into a watery chamber. A deep, dark moat separated them from the exit on the other side. That's when they noticed the glowing shell of a giant snail. The snail began speaking in Maztican, so Crucelia began to translate. It called itself Tecuziztecatl, Lord of Snails, and cousin to the Moon. It then began to boast of how it would soon kill them all.
Without hesitation, Kouvian charged the Lord of Snails, but he soon discovered that his attacks were not doing the damage he hoped for. Azid, feeling clever, used his magic slippers to climb on the back of the snail to attack it, believing that he was untouchable from this location. He was shocked when a pseudopod came up from under the snail's shell and began to smack him. Glebnor and Stinkbreath began attacking the snail as well. Soon, Tecuziztecatl surrendered to them, calling them worthy adversaries that he would help in the quest through the shrine.
The party began to ask him questions regarding the history of the shine, and he willingly answered them. He told Azid that the small silver pyramid represented his cousin, Apocatequil, god of the moon and lightning. When asked how to escape the gas-filled chambers of the shrine, he told them there was a great staircase they would have to climb to escape the lowest levels of the shrine. Lastly, they asked about the shine itself, and the Lord of Snails told them that it was dedicated to the demigod of bats, Tamoachan, and his favored warrior Tloques-Popolocas.
With no further questions to ask and the poisonous gas being a constant irritant, the party decided to move on. Tecuziztecatl swam into the moat and allowed the Rat Pack to use his shell as a bridge to cross the dark moat. On the other side were some stairs leading up to another brass door they went through.
Before them was a body of deep water separating them from another set of brass doors with the sun craved into it. Then they caught a glimpse of something swimming in the water. Glebnor approached the shore and called out to whatever was in the water. A beautiful blue fey with green hair walked out of the water and onto the beach. Glebnor, infatuated with the fey, tried to convince Vraky to give her the beads from the other room so they could give them to the fey as a gift. Azid commanded Vraky not to give Glebnor anything.
Speaking Maztican, the fey introduced herself as Dasa Zotz and asked the party what they wished for. The party, unsure of what they wanted, just talked circles amongst themselves. Dasa began to walk back into the water with a silvery laugh, telling them to call for her when they decided.
Curious Azid sent his astral skull into the depths of the water to follow her. The fey saw his skull and just looked at it coyly. Recalling his skull, Azid used his magical slippers to walk on the ceiling to the other side, telling the rest of the party good luck finding their way. Glebnor decided to enter the water and swam down to find the fey. Before they knew it, something struck them hard, pushing them out of the water.
Glebnor called out for the fey to ask how they could cross. Dasa surfaced again and saw where Azid was standing on the ceiling. She said that was cheating, creating a whip out of the water to strike him. He fell, unconscious and dying, into the briny water. One of the glass orbs he had taken earlier broke on impact with the water, and the swirling green gas overtook him.
The party negotiated a price to cross the water, and they each paid 100 GP for the right to swim across her water. As they did, Vraky grabbed the body of Azid and carried it through the brass doors. The water continued through the next hallway but steadily became more and more shallow until, eventually, they could stand up and walk.
The hallway led them to yet another hallway, but much larger. Frescos on the wall depicted the history of the Maztican's around the image of a pyramid with a sun setting above it. The door at the end of this hallway was false, and it took the group some time to figure out where to go next. Eventually, a desperate Vraky touched everything he could on the walls until he touched the sun, and it pressed inward, revealing a hidden door.
The orb led him into a hallway with a bottomless pit. It floated to the other side and waited for them. Kouvian easily jumped across the pit and then used some rope to help the others. Once across, Vraky immediately took the lead again, following the bobbing light down the hallway.
While following the light, the weight of Vraky, Azid, and Crucelia triggered a pressure plate, and the ground fell out from under them. They slid down a sandy wall into the bottom of a pit. They desperately tried to climb out of the pit but had trouble maneuvering through the sand. As they did this, the orb descended to their level and began to try and sap the life away from Crucelia.
Glebnor somehow found a place for her grappling hook to hold on to, and everyone grabbed her rope to climb out of the sandpit. With everyone out, the glowing orb bobbed out of the pit and down the hall away from the adventurers.
The beetle told them they did not know what was through the doors around them, nor did they seem to care what the shiny objects in the pile were. As Vraky approached the pile to search it, the beetle told Glebnor to stop him. It was too late, though, and Vraky had already begun to dig through the nest of the beetles. They all swarmed and began attacking the party. They were no match for the seasoned adventurers and were quickly defeated.
In his moment of victory, Vraky reached into the nest and pulled out a dagger with a chipped and rusted blade and a frayed hilt. Pleased with his find, he sheathed the dagger and continued to carry his sleeping master.
Glebnor looked at the doors in the room. One set of doors led south, which was the direction they came from; however, it could turn again. The other set of doors led to the north. They relayed this information to the group, and they all decided to take the doors to the north. Crucelia opened the doors to reveal a great staircase leading upward. The session concluded at 10:50 am on the first day in the shrine.
The Court of Cemanahuac
Going back through the room with the aggressive crayfish, still guarding the boulder, they moved around it and took the set of doors to the west. This led them down to a chamber depicting some history of the gods. Azid was fascinated by a small silver pyramid but decided not to touch it. Glebnor was entranced by the caustic white walls and decided to lick them. They immediately began to burn as the acid substance ate away at them. Finally, they managed to scrape it off. Azid decided to take some in a vial for later.Moving beyond this chamber, they enter another hallway that ends with another brass door, this one with a depiction of the moon, and has a statue standing next to it. The statue was of a warrior with a sword on his back. He held an empty tray up as if offering it to the gods. Azid was more interested in his obsidian eyes and used a mage hand to pluck one hanging loosely from its socket.
No longer interested in the statue, the party moves through the moon doors into a watery chamber. A deep, dark moat separated them from the exit on the other side. That's when they noticed the glowing shell of a giant snail. The snail began speaking in Maztican, so Crucelia began to translate. It called itself Tecuziztecatl, Lord of Snails, and cousin to the Moon. It then began to boast of how it would soon kill them all.
Without hesitation, Kouvian charged the Lord of Snails, but he soon discovered that his attacks were not doing the damage he hoped for. Azid, feeling clever, used his magic slippers to climb on the back of the snail to attack it, believing that he was untouchable from this location. He was shocked when a pseudopod came up from under the snail's shell and began to smack him. Glebnor and Stinkbreath began attacking the snail as well. Soon, Tecuziztecatl surrendered to them, calling them worthy adversaries that he would help in the quest through the shrine.
The party began to ask him questions regarding the history of the shine, and he willingly answered them. He told Azid that the small silver pyramid represented his cousin, Apocatequil, god of the moon and lightning. When asked how to escape the gas-filled chambers of the shrine, he told them there was a great staircase they would have to climb to escape the lowest levels of the shrine. Lastly, they asked about the shine itself, and the Lord of Snails told them that it was dedicated to the demigod of bats, Tamoachan, and his favored warrior Tloques-Popolocas.
With no further questions to ask and the poisonous gas being a constant irritant, the party decided to move on. Tecuziztecatl swam into the moat and allowed the Rat Pack to use his shell as a bridge to cross the dark moat. On the other side were some stairs leading up to another brass door they went through.
Child of Zotzilaha
They went through a hallway and reached another brass door that was stuck. Azid used the caustic acid from the other room to destroy the hinges. As he did so, the door burst open, and water hit the party, pushing them back some. They discovered that this water came from the hallway beyond the flooded tomb. They followed it further and heard a melodic song from beyond another set of doors. Sending Crucelia first, she opened the doors for the rest of the party, and they entered what appeared to be a small, magical grotto.Before them was a body of deep water separating them from another set of brass doors with the sun craved into it. Then they caught a glimpse of something swimming in the water. Glebnor approached the shore and called out to whatever was in the water. A beautiful blue fey with green hair walked out of the water and onto the beach. Glebnor, infatuated with the fey, tried to convince Vraky to give her the beads from the other room so they could give them to the fey as a gift. Azid commanded Vraky not to give Glebnor anything.
Speaking Maztican, the fey introduced herself as Dasa Zotz and asked the party what they wished for. The party, unsure of what they wanted, just talked circles amongst themselves. Dasa began to walk back into the water with a silvery laugh, telling them to call for her when they decided.
Curious Azid sent his astral skull into the depths of the water to follow her. The fey saw his skull and just looked at it coyly. Recalling his skull, Azid used his magical slippers to walk on the ceiling to the other side, telling the rest of the party good luck finding their way. Glebnor decided to enter the water and swam down to find the fey. Before they knew it, something struck them hard, pushing them out of the water.
Glebnor called out for the fey to ask how they could cross. Dasa surfaced again and saw where Azid was standing on the ceiling. She said that was cheating, creating a whip out of the water to strike him. He fell, unconscious and dying, into the briny water. One of the glass orbs he had taken earlier broke on impact with the water, and the swirling green gas overtook him.
The party negotiated a price to cross the water, and they each paid 100 GP for the right to swim across her water. As they did, Vraky grabbed the body of Azid and carried it through the brass doors. The water continued through the next hallway but steadily became more and more shallow until, eventually, they could stand up and walk.
The Great Hall
Once they were clear of the water, Kouvian began investigating Azid to see what happened to him. He discovered that the gas was likely some powerful poison that caused him to go into a deep sleep where he would not age. Unsure of how to wake him from his comatose state, Vraky continued carrying his master.The hallway led them to yet another hallway, but much larger. Frescos on the wall depicted the history of the Maztican's around the image of a pyramid with a sun setting above it. The door at the end of this hallway was false, and it took the group some time to figure out where to go next. Eventually, a desperate Vraky touched everything he could on the walls until he touched the sun, and it pressed inward, revealing a hidden door.
The Sandbox
As Vraky continued to carry Azid, he was mesmerized by the sudden appearance of a glowing orb. The orb flew up to him and, in a way, motioned to be followed. Vraky began to follow it without question, and the rest of the party followed him.The orb led him into a hallway with a bottomless pit. It floated to the other side and waited for them. Kouvian easily jumped across the pit and then used some rope to help the others. Once across, Vraky immediately took the lead again, following the bobbing light down the hallway.
While following the light, the weight of Vraky, Azid, and Crucelia triggered a pressure plate, and the ground fell out from under them. They slid down a sandy wall into the bottom of a pit. They desperately tried to climb out of the pit but had trouble maneuvering through the sand. As they did this, the orb descended to their level and began to try and sap the life away from Crucelia.
Glebnor somehow found a place for her grappling hook to hold on to, and everyone grabbed her rope to climb out of the sandpit. With everyone out, the glowing orb bobbed out of the pit and down the hall away from the adventurers.
The Nest of Warriors
Crucelia led the way into the next room. What they found was a room of gore and decay, filled with giant glowing beetles feeding. They moved sporadically through the room to and from a central pile. The central pile had glints of metal and stone shining from the passing beetles. Glebnor used their Ring of Animal Friendship to commune with one of the beetles.The beetle told them they did not know what was through the doors around them, nor did they seem to care what the shiny objects in the pile were. As Vraky approached the pile to search it, the beetle told Glebnor to stop him. It was too late, though, and Vraky had already begun to dig through the nest of the beetles. They all swarmed and began attacking the party. They were no match for the seasoned adventurers and were quickly defeated.
In his moment of victory, Vraky reached into the nest and pulled out a dagger with a chipped and rusted blade and a frayed hilt. Pleased with his find, he sheathed the dagger and continued to carry his sleeping master.
Glebnor looked at the doors in the room. One set of doors led south, which was the direction they came from; however, it could turn again. The other set of doors led to the north. They relayed this information to the group, and they all decided to take the doors to the north. Crucelia opened the doors to reveal a great staircase leading upward. The session concluded at 10:50 am on the first day in the shrine.
Rewards Granted
+576 experience to Azid, Glebnor, Kouvian, and Stinkbreath.
Stinkbreath
Report Date
16 Jul 2023
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