Fall of the Dark Cathedral

General Summary

Ready'reat 13th, 595 CY

2024-02-12

With all of the cultists dead, the Topknots took their time in the temple and the Labyrinth, searching for the kenku nests and any treasures the kenku kept. Kaszu spent some of that time identifying items with magical auras before heading out to the main cathedral. Once Kaszu was in the main cathedral, a fiendish creature erupted from the inky black pool. The fiend was a ten-foot tall, powerfully built monster with six arms. It had smooth, dull gray skin and bulging muscles that pulsed with arcane power. Three of its arms, two on its left and one on its right, were missing their hands. It had a gaunt, skeletal face and massive fangs, growling like a beast in battle, and fighting like a savage animal. A bizarre amalgamation of the three deities it embodied.
Kaszu got the jump as the creature closed the distance to the gnome. He misty stepped away into the corridor leading to Hextor's Citadel. The rest of the Topknots, still exploring the labyrinth heard the commotion and charged out to confront whatever the gnome had triggered. Crichton was the first to confront this Ebon Aspect, and was swiftly cut down by the creature.
As Crichton lay bleeding out the Topknots struck, Malakai with his chill touch, Paelex with his sorcerous burst, Kaszu with his infused crossbow, and Argan with his axe. Injured, Tolman tried to out it to sleep, but the ebon aspect was too powerful for the spell. The creature tore into Malakai, wounding the druid and severely damaging Kaszu's spider while, at the last second, Kaszu poured a potion of healing down the dying Crichton's throat. Argan's axe got the last word, and the creature dissolved into a pile of goop.
Knowing that it was still night, and the mine would be nearly empty, the Topknots decided to make a creak for it. Delilah used her magic to disguise herself as Kendra, the female cleric of Hextor, and imperiously escorted the rest of her companions out. The mine's night watch gave way when "Kendra" appeared and let the Topknots walk out into the night air for the first time in days.
It was now hours before sunrise, so the Topknots made the trek back to their base and bedded down for the rest of the night.

Ready'reat 14th, 595 CY

The next morning, the companions met in the common area and really started to take stock of their situation. The first thing they needed to do was go through all of the treasures they accumulated and decide what to sell and what to keep. While Paelex said he would be happy to wheel and deal on the Topnot's behalf, he didn't know the town, so Kaszu made piles for the various merchants, weapons and armor for Osgood's, gems and jewelry for Tidwoad's, and the rest for Taggin's General Store. He also went through the items and passed out the scrolls and alchemicals to those who would make the most use of them.
They also discussed what they would need to do to wrap up loose ends, someone would have to notify the town about the evil temples below the mines, either the garrison or Allustan seemed like a good place to start. Allustan had probably finished his research into the name that would open the tomb in the Whispering Cairn, and then there's what to do with Smenk and the Bulldogs. They also had the codebook to decode the note found in Theldrick's quarters.
Up and ready for the day, Kaszu and Crichton made their way to Neff Manor to purchase the deeds for the mine and the observatory while Paelex stopped in and introduced himself at Taggin's and Osgood's selling the items the Topknot's picked up. He tried to work a deal with Tidwoad, but a 25% conversion fee just seemed a bit ridiculous. Kaszu later tried with Tidwoad and talked him down to a 5% conversion rate.
Malakai made his way to the mine while Argan stayed of the base. Crichton, Paelex, Tolman, and Kaszu settled into the Observatory. Now that the treasure was sold and the proceeds divided, it was time to plan for the future. The Topknots were at a point in their journey that they could start developing their own places, looking to the future. Argan wanted to develop a leatherworking/tannery shop and a storehouse to sell the items he made, while Malakai needed a fungal garden and an herbalist shop. Kaszu wanted a smithy and artificer's workshop, while Crichton wanted a sanctuary to Bahamut and to start an armory. Tolman and Paelex both wanted a library and arcane study.
Delilah and Tolman then took Paelex to meet Allustan. The sage and mentor greeted his students fondly and was intrigued by Paelex's story, hoping to get to know him better over time. It was then that Delilah let Allustan know of her intention to travel back to the Free City and re-enroll at the University of Magical Arts to finish her studies to become a wizard. After telling him of the evil temples of the Ebon Triad under Dourstone Mine, Allustan suggested that they gather their dragonborn sergeant "on special assignment" and head to the garrison.
Before leaving though, Allustan told Tolman, that the wind duke glyph on the sarcophagus was the glyph of Zosiel, who served as Herald of Icosiel, one of the seven Wandering dukes who created the Rod of Law, and was sent into the thick of the Chaos War. He fought until his last breath left his body at the Battle of Pesh. At a critical point of the battle, the demonic general Miska the Wolf Spider used stealth and cunning to outflank a group of Wind Duke leaders, Icosiel and Qadeej. Zosiel, however, spotted the flanking maneuver and sacrificed his own life to protect Icosiel and alert his leaders to the threat. In honor of his sacrifice Zosiel was buried in a monumental Tomb, which must be the Whispering Cairn. The architect of the tomb was Nadroc, which coincided with another glyph they had found in various places throughout the cairn. The three tomes the Topknots brought back from the Great Library of Greyhawk, Pesh: Allegory or Reality?, Chronicle of Chan, and the Rod of Seven Parts, tells much of the stories of that time.
"So, let's get Crichton and have him report to Commander Trask."

Campaign

Against the Ebon Triad

Protagonists

Paelex Cavian

Chaotic Neutral Tiefling (Noble)
Sorcerer 5

32 / 32 HP

STR
8

DEX
14

CON
12

INT
11

WIS
13

CHA
18

Tolman K’hurzz

Malakai Steelbuckle

Delilah Raincloud

Crichton Eogen

Argan Agu-Ulakanu

Chaotic Good Goliath (Outlander)
Ranger 4

36 / 36 HP

STR
18

DEX
14

CON
14

INT
10

WIS
12

CHA
8

Kaszu Billowcase

Chaotic Good Rock Gnome (Guild Artisan / Guild Merchant)
Artificer 3

24 / 24 HP

STR
8

DEX
12

CON
14

INT
17

WIS
14

CHA
10

Report Date

02 Mar 2025