The Labyrinth of Vecna

General Summary

Ready'reat 13th, 595 CY

2024-01-15

After defeating the grimlock warlock, Grallak Kur and taking some time to clean up and refresh, the Topknots made their way to the last door. As the entered the Dark Cathedral, they noticed the pool of blackness in the southern dome seemed like it was boiling. When they first entered the Cathedral, the pool was still. Once they had defeated the Citadel of Hextor, bubbles began appearing, like a slow boil. Now the pool looked like it was at the boiling point. Crichton's divine senses picked up a fiendish evil. Climbing the platforms, Paelex and Kaszu searched an found a small chest with a silver idol of Erythnul and a pouch of gold.
Heading north, Kaszu found that the silver key opened the northern door with the symbol of Vecna. They entered an area of corridors heading in several directions. Cawing sounds came from all directions. Soon, one of the Topknots noticed a bird-like humanoid, a kenku, dash from one corridor and around a corner. Malakai cast a moonbeam to block one of the corridors while Argan granted himself darkvision. Crichton closed on one of the kenku sneaks and wounded him with his glaive attacks. The kenku were keeping their distance and shooting with their bows, but the first few attacks bounced off Crichton's armor. Paelex got one of the kenku in a sorcerous burst, while another was damaged by moving through the moonbeam. The Topknots soon came to the realization that this was one large maze. One that the kenku knew intimately.
As Argan shouted "Bird Meat for dinner!" the kenku kept using hit and run tactics, but their preferred target, Crichton, was too well-protected for them to land a strike. Argan took out the first one, while Crichton finished off a second. Another sorcerous burst dropped another, while the moonbeam took care of a fourth. At that point they realized that another "nest" of kenku had joined the battle. Moving through the labyrinth, the Topknots were getting scattered. Argan managed to strike another kenku when the Topknots saw one of the sneaks touch a side wall and open a secret passage. Crichton managed to fell a fifth kenku while a new kenku ran through the moonbeam, taking damage in the process.
Paelex's sorcerous burst wounded another new kenku while Argan chopped another to the ground. One of the kenku shot Kaszu and hit, even with his magical shield, while another moved up behind Tolman and stabbed him with a shortsword. More kenku joined the race through the labyrinth, striking, disengaging and fleeing around corners and through secret doors.
Eventually, one of the kenku opened a secret door, releasing a daemon, a mezzoloth, into the battle. The fiend moved to engage the nearest opponent, Argan, who peppered it with arrows as it closed. Tolman created a bonfire under the mezzoloth, which took far less damage than he expected. The daemon struck Argan with his trident, but missed with his other two claws, but Argan couldn't penetrate its defenses with his axe. Kaszu's infused crossbow was finally able to damage the fiend and Tolman was able to land a good surprise attack, but the mezzoloth was resistant to many of their attacks and seemed to always take less damage that expected. Malakai tried to magically blind it, but the things shrugged off the effect. A few more fiendish attacks had severely wounded Argan, who called out for healing. Argan got a few good strikes at the yugoloth and Kszu finally finished it off with his crossbow.
Meanwhile, Paelex was involved in his own battle with a kenku who led him through the maze. Following, Paelex came on the last nest, complete with the kenku boss and spellcaster. Two of the sneaks managed to land shortsword attacks as Paelex tried to move away. Argan, healed up by Malakai and his own magic soon found the battle and he and his drake took one of the new sneaks down. Crichton was having no luck hitting, but Paelex's sorcerous burst managed to catch the other sneak before it counterattacked.
The kenku caster, a crowspeaker, used his thorn whip to attack Crichton. Argan finally took position against the last sneak while Crichton engaged the kenku boss. Paelex was worried, one more strike would kill him and yet his new companions were filling the hallway he needed to escape. Thinking a bit more clearly, he used his magic to misty step past his companions as they struck mercilessly against the kenku. As Argan dropped the last sneak, Crichton took a vow of enmity against the boss, severely wounding it. Kaszu finished up the crows with two crossbow bolts, one dropped the boss, the next dropped the severely wounded crowspeaker.
The sounds of cawing throughout the labyrinth had been fading. Surrounded by dead kenku, the Topknots realized that all went quiet. Taking about a half-hour, they gathered up the treausres from all of the enku they had dropped in the labyrinth and started talking about next steps. They still hadn't found the leaders of the Vecna cultists.

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

20 Jan 2025