Tombs of Scoria: Episode 12

__NOTOC__
== Synopsis ==
The McGary brothers are investigating the vampire Cassandra in the Halfling Riverlands when they discover a crashed, blood-stained carriage containing a holy symbol and various anti-vampire tools. They visit a grave keeper, charm him for information, and find out that the victims were not clerics but commoners. Using magic, they speak with animals and the dead, gathering clues that lead them to Lady Ullworth's estate. Stealthily infiltrating the estate, they encounter Reginald, a cleric turned vampire, and engage in a fierce battle. Despite initial struggles and a difficult fight in a rainstorm, they ultimately destroy the vampire with holy water, dispelling the misty form and ending the threat.
==Recap==
===3rd November 1511===
The McGary Brothers are in the Halfing Riverlands on an investigation into the Vampire Cassandra.
The brothers go to investigate the carriage accident.
They come across a crashed carriage, smashed into a tree, blood-stained into the wood, pushed over to the side, left mangled. Imrik starts digging through the remains. Inside there's a holy symbol, scratched away, the interlocking rings of Martha. Somehow, during the mangling and crashing, the symbol on the floor of the carriage got shredded away by some clawed creature. Imrik moves some wood away, casts , and finds a hidden compartment at the underpart. Inside there is huge garlands of garlic, a thick holy book wrapped in a leather strap, a hammer/mace, a lightstone, and vials of holy water. They go back to talk to the grave keeper, whilst traveling back, they discuss which questions to ask the dead cleric, since Anton has the ability to cast 
They nap on the road.
They come back and find the graves filled.
They knock on the grave keeper's door, he comes out, Imrik puts a hand on his shoulder and casts . They ask to see the cleric's body, but he says there is no cleric, his thoughts also say that he didn't bury any clerics. He informs them that people who died were: Rose a wagon driver; Daisy, Rose's daughter; Bud, a gardener of sorts.  The grave keeper, deeply concerned, says that digging up corpses is gonna draw a lot of attention, Imrik suggests digging it up doing the night. They tell him that something is preying on the poor people, it's a state secret, and he needs to keep quiet about it. Anton reads the cleric's prayerbook and finds notes on the Vampire Cassandra, midway through.
They go to Rose's farm, Anton casts and talks to the wounded horse, Chester. Anton heals his wound, Chester tells him a scary thing, that smelled like death, attacked their wagon and there was a fourth person in the carriage - a human, but cannot recall any markings. They suspect the creature used some form of magical darkness since Chester couldn't see anything. 
They go to rest at a tavern for the rest of the day. Anton studies the notes on the vampire. 
Cleric's notes say that he was quested by Astair to bring the demise of the Vampire, talks about offerings to a blue dragon once a year and things like meeting people and visiting places. There are notes about an old human woman, Lady Ullworth, living in the walled estate in Petalwater. She was not present when he visited, he detected no evil, but still thinks something is afoot. He mentions that halfling named Bud will help him. Tyrael and Imrik argue about whether the vampires possess or not.
They decide to cast on Bud and to break into Lady Ullworth's estate. They wait till night time and meet with the grave keeper to dig up the corpse of Bud, Imrik asks the grave keeper if he wants to watch, he walks away closing the door of the shed behind him. The answers Anton gets are quite vague, they learn getting into the estate is simple, they go through the front door, and learn the cleric was taken. 
Imrik cuts the head of Bud's body, for the ability to ask questions later. They rest in the tavern, discuss how to deal with the vampire, Anton keeps watch the entire night with .
=== 4th November 1511 ===
Anton uses to create holy water, they visit the carriage and attacks and hears a single thought : "She's found me.". 
Anton talks to Bud's head again:
*"How do we get in Lady Ullworth's estate unnoticed" - "Carefully"
*"Was the cleric taken alive" -  "Yes"
Anton hits Bud's head and the brothers express their worry about his recent cruel behavior. 
They look for a place to camp near the estate, trying to avoid the villages, away from the river. The rain from earlier, turns into a heavy storm, making it unable to prepare spells. They all sleep in a barn, so Anton and Imrik can prepare spells.
=== 5th November 1511 ===
They use and Imrik casts on everyone. They walk up the mud road, towards Lady Ullworth's estate. They walk with care, making sure that it doesn't look out of place, with downpour and invisibility. 
They make it to an estate, it is old unkept keep with wooden gates, on the sheer mountainside. Tyrael tries to check for magical traps, finding nothing, and he scales the wall. Inside he sees a brand new garden and a large courtyard before the keep. While walking around he tries to see if he can hear anything odd, and he does, a pipe organ from deep within the keep, and a fist against wood, pounding.
He ties the rope, hops down the wall, they talk for a bit, Anton casts on him and he climbs up the rope leading up the wall. Tyrael sneaks up to a small part at the side of the keep, it seems the pounding is coming from this exact door, he tries it but it's locked. Tyrael speaks very quietly into the door, there is the cleric of Astair called Reginald, behind the door, he tells Reginald to act as though nothing happened, Tyrael heads back and over the wall, and talk again with the brothers about their plan going forward, whether or not they should save the cleric. 
The brothers try to get up the wall, but both Anton and Imrik fail with the rope, so instead Tyrael comes up with the great idea of using the magical rope of climbing to instead wrap them up. They talk to Reginald, Tyrael giving clear instructions and trying the lock, however with the rain it doesn't work, Imrik then says the holy words "Open sesame", casting , the lock opens, Reginald keeps knocking.
Tyrael quickly pulls out his lightstone, and looks around the room, seeing a cellar in the back of the room, Anton casts on him, Reginald screams out in pain and turns to attack them. Imrik quickly throws out a , but Reginald is unaffected, he then throws himself at Anton, and screams "I'm so thirsty!" as his teeth sink into Anton, he sucks out the life of Anton, with . The Vampire throws himself at Tyrael, while at the same time Anton quickly flings out a , Tyrael saves from the energy drain, as he jumps at Tyrael both of them get opportunity attacks, and swing wild, Tyrael's sword again goes wild!
Imrik casts . Anton tries to make it look like he's casting protection on evil on Imrik while in reality, he uses it on himself, Imrik swings wild his static axe, Tyrael brings out a Holy Candle. The candle burns the vampire. With his back against the wall, the vampire impossibly climbs up, opening him up Anton brings down the mace hitting the ground, Imrik also decides to miss. As the Vampire leaps from over Imrik at Tyrael, Tyrael deftly stabs him with the sword knocking him aside stopping the bite. The vampire is laying on the ground, they still miss with their swords, maces, and axes. Reginald turns into a gaseous form and floats into the courtyard. Tyrael runs out with a candle in one hand, sword in the other swinging at him, candle blows out in the rain, Imrik uses a scroll of , dispelling the misty form, they battle with him. Imrik casts . As Anton hammers the Martha mace into him, the vampire bursts into gaseous form. The gaseous form floats away back to the shed. Tyrael swings at the mist, missing, Anton sprays holy water all over it, the mist floats down the stairs into the cellar, Imrik runs down the stairs, not being able to see the mist. However, Anton sees it and kills it with holy water. It hisses and screams and dissipates.
Recap done by Odysseus
==Experience==
No experience given this week.
Anton was Drained for -4627.5 points worth of EXP
Category:Tombs of Scoria Episodes