Expedition 7: Introducing Mighty Mouse

We explore the bunker beneath the Badlands for the first time, and encounter an undead mage and floating skulls.

### Detailed Writeup

The adventure began with the party embarking once again into the Badlands, as the sun rose on a misty day. As they traveled, the group discussed the sword found in the rockfall (Now known to bear the inscription: ‘Guard(ian) of Mage Kendon’) and the mysterious holes that the arsenic extracting group found. The group stumbled upon another one of the holes, but without Tolyr’s mapmaking experience were unable to make sense of it in relation to the other ones. Some astute investigation however revealed that none of the party knew of a natural creature who could makes holes so deep and uniform.

After a while the group came to the cave where the stairs were located and Jamie, flush with anger at the stones who had bested him before, swing his mighty pickaxe and utterly demolished the blockage (30 athletics).

As the group descended, Jamie leading the way, one of the staird depressed and two spears shot out of the wall, wounding Jamie and causing him to allow Calliope and Lahont to take the lead, searching for traps, until further notice. Finding no other traps, the group found the source of the light, a circular portal in the ceiling, next to two statues, a dwarf and a goblin. Calliope threw one of her ball bearings at the ceiling which produced a message in Dwarvish:

“As chaos looks thrice upon the other lands, law looks twice upon our nation.” After pondering what was clearly a riddle, Calliope found that the heads of the statues could turn. Some trial and error later, the dwarf head was turned twice around (with addible click indicating that some sort of mechanism was at work) and the goblin head thrice, the wall behind the dwarf’s niche receded and assaulted the party with a horrible stench that caused Marzipan and Jamie to vomit instantly.

We quickly discovered the source of the smell: two mummified corpses still on their bedrolls, that had decomposed in the absence of oxygen, down below the earth. Nexrin estimated that they had likely been there for hundreds of years as he pierced one with his spear, determining they were safe to search. In the room they discovered a crossbow made entirely of metal, a set of papery card-like-objects with the same mysterious dwarven script, a box covered in runes that Calliope discovered to be trapped when it spit sparks in her face as she opened it to remove its contents of two topaz stones, and a locked door.

The door was cut into the rock at a strange angle, and adored with the same mysterious script, but Jamie recognized one word from the sword, Kendon. At this point the party realized where they likely were, the lair of the mage Kendon, and would need to use all of their combined might and cunning to loot it safely.

The door in their path had an orb in its center bearing the magical sigil of illusion. Calliope attempted to cast the minor illusion cantrip into it, but it did not activate. Marzipan then ritually cast identify to learn that the orb was a lock, that required a leveled spell of the shown discipline of magic to be cast into it. If the wrong school was used, the caster would take 3d6 lightning damage and the sigil would switch. With that, Marzipan took 3d6 lightning damage and the sigil switched, this time to the school of abjuration, which we had more instances of. Marzipan cast protection from evil and good into the orb, and the door opened into a lush garden.

As this happened, a disembodied voice began to chant “Al'durun Maro Dakateth, ” but since none of us spoke this mysterious Dwarven-esque language, we decided to ignore it. With high rolls in perception and nature, Calliope and Marzipan noted that the plants were largely herbs used for cooking, and that there were many bugs crawling around on them. As Marzipan sat down to ritually cast detect poison and disease, however, the bugs were drawn to his magical energy and attacked.

Jamie attempted to fend off the swarm with his torch, but it was clear that some other type of attack would be needed to destroy the swarms. Marzipan, thinking quickly, fled the cloud of bugs engulfing him, and calling on the power of the Wildmother, summoned a moonbeam that utterly ‘cinderizes’ (Feldman 3-28-2020) the swarms of bugs.

Marzipan proceeds to collect all the herbs he can from the garden, while Calliope inspects the two doors leaving the garden, which have an impression of a hand on them, after touching the handprint (to several shouts of protest) the left door opened without a hitch. Calliope then sent another ball bearing skittering down the hallway which triggered a trip wire attached to an axe hidden in the rafters, after seeing this, Lahont and Calliope searched the hallway for traps before proceeding into the room at the end of it, a very well-appointed kitchen.

The kitchen is nice, but not full of the loot that the adventures desire, so after discovering a warm stone with a magical aura in the kitchen, they turn back to search the other branch out from the garden. This hallway contains a pit trap, but now that the adventurers have seen more of the layout of the bunker, they believe they will be able to access the room behind it from other doors, so they leave it for now. Continuing back to the kitchen, the adventures head to their right and find what they presume to be the wizard’s library, but after a quick search, decided that proceeding into the next room, the one behind the pit, was the best way forward.

The alchemical laboratory behind the door contained various glass instruments and containers, as well as another mummified corpse slumped over a table, and a large robotic golem in the back, as Calliope rushed towards the Golem and Nexrin and Marzipan inspected the corpse, Jamie attempted to take a book from the library to prove to the party that he could, in fact, read. As he did this however, he noticed a strange tension holding the book in place, and as he pulled, the disembodied voice boomed “Morkoth Deneer” which, since we still didn’t know what it meant, prompted Jamie to put the book back.

As this is happening, the mummy Nexrin and Marzipan were examining comes to life! With black, magical light in its eyes, it reaches out and critically strikes Marzipan, leaving him down in a heap, crackling with necrotic energy. The golem also begins to activate as the party springs into action...

Jamie swung out at the wizard, but the blow seemed not to hurt him, as a matching wound appeared on the golem. After this, the wizard surrounded himself with fell energy as Lahont squeezed off a shot at the Golem after trying, unsuccessfully, to use the metal crossbow. Nexrin reached down to heal Marzipan, dodging the wizards attack as he dragged him away. The golem attempted to punch calliope and missed. She responded with much apprehension about hurting something that she could loot for parts, but nevertheless took a shot at the creation, hitting home. Jamie then rushed to Calliope’s aid, striking at the golem as Marzipan fired a guiding bolt into the wizard’s face, who was unable to shield having already tried to attack Nexrin as he ran. However, the bolt was not enough to help Lahont aim true, and as his next shot flashed wide, the wizard attempted to dominate Jamie, but Marzipan used his magical abilities to siphon the spell out of mid-air and shrug the effects off. Nexrin then found an advantageous position from where he could shoot a line of acid into both the wizard and the golem, and doing so managed to wound both. The golem then turned it’s attention to Jamie, but recieved a blow from Calliope in return, followed by a critical strike from Jamie to its core, which destroyed the construct. Marzipan then snapped off a sacred flame that was unfortunately unable to damage the wizard much. The wizard responds by sending out four bolts of magical flame, only one of which connects with Nexrin, before Lahont flashes another shot wide and Nexrin turns to run the wizard down. After landing a telling blow however, Nexrin is set upon by the shards of black energy that shattered off of the wizard as his armor of Agathys was broken. Calliope briefly attempted to reason with the wizard, who we only then realize had been mute the entire fight, before Jamie dispatched him with a commanding strike, which removed his head.

After the battle, Marzipan invoked a prayer of healing as Calliope recast detect magic. Nexrin searched the lab for any glassware Lindsey might be interested in, and the book the wizard was working on when he ostensibly perished, an alchemical formula with feverishly written margin notes. He also loots the body of the down wizard, discovering an arcane focus, a glass ball with a bug at the center, and a horn leafed in gold and inset with emeralds at its mouth. After this, Calliope attempts to salvage some golem parts, but is mostly only able to retrieve the gemstones from around its neck. While she does this, Marzipan and Lahont open the door leading out of the library to find a minecart track with three signs over it that no one is able to read because, again, whatever language the wizard spoke, we don’t know it.

After the group comes back together, they proceed to the kitchen, not wanting to follow signs they cannot read, and search the last unopened door they can see. Calliope discoveres some runes along its frame, but is still bathed in acid as she attempts to open it, loosing concentration on detect magic as a voice from within the chamber calls out “Did someone forget to the say the words.” Undeterred by the spooky voice, the party makes camp in the kitchen next to the now open door to ritually cast detect magic and identify, while Lahont and Jamie look for a book on the language they are unable to read so Lahnot can work on learning it. As this happens, the group is, somewhat unsurprisingly in retrospect, ambushed by a team of floating skulls Marzipan, Calliope, and Nexrin are the targets, resulting in Nexrin taking damage and Marzipan becoming confused.

Lahont charges back into the room, his perceptive senses and quick feet allowing him to get the drop on the skulls (critical success for initiative). However, his shot is pulled wide and he is forced to hide in one of the cupboards to avoid retaliation. Nexrin dives into cover and attempts to heal himself, but is unable to muster up much magic. Calliope launches a firebolt and drags Marzipan into cover, taking his wild swing on her armor, unharmed. Jamie bravely rushed back into the room, only to take all 4 bolts directly to the face from the skulls, but makes all of his saves but one, sustaining a small amount of damage. Lahont shoots, misses, and hides behind the counter. Nexrin heals himself again, restoring some of his vitality, and remains in cover. Calliope launches another firebolt and manages to avoid Jamie’s confused swings as he is pummeled by another salvo of bolts. Lahont and Nexrin both miss their shots as Calliope runs in front of Jamie, taking all the bolts herself and resisting the effects. Jamie then drags Calliope out of the room while Marzipan summons a spiritual spatula and begins doing some real damage and killing one skull. Lahont hits with a bolt, before Nexrin shoots again and misses. Out of range, Calliope and Jamie hunker down to avoid another blasting. As the skulls retreat out of sight, Marzipan bravely runs through the door, taking the skulls bolts but resisting them, and killing another. Lahont, Nexrin, and Calliope then take turns running into the next room, firing at the skulls, missing, and running out as Jamie, upset that he isn’t quite 15 feet tall, holds an action to spear a skull if it shows itself. Marzipan confidently strides into the room, but the skulls, now aware of his awesome wisdom modifier, try to bite him, both missing (You cannot harm the mouse, cheers the party). Lahont gets a shot off that hits, and Nexrin follows up to crit and kill the same skull. Calliope’s shot on the final skull misses, and the skull, laughing hideously, fires a defiant blast of energy at Marzipan, making it the second time he was downed by a bolt of necrotic energy in one day. However, mighty mouse would not be restrained, as after a critical success on a death saving throw, Marzipan rises, much to the confusion of the final skull (YOU WILL NOT HARM THE MOUSE, cheers the party, louder this time). Jamie rushes in to kill the last skull, but his critical failure on an athletics check to push Nexrin out of the way results in him being unable to contribute. However, another shot from Lahont and spear strike from Nexrin is enough to pop the final skull like a balloon and leave the party bleeding and battered, but alive.

Free of the danger of imminent death, the ritual castings of detect magic and identify are completed, and the party enters the final room, the wizards bedchamber. After a successful check to detect, and disarm a trap on the large chest, Lahont and Calliope discover 200 gp worth of arcanium and three units of dark brass. Turning their attention to the wardrobe, which also has a magical signal, they disarm more traps and discover a leather satchel, as well as some fine clothes that Marzipan tries to convince Jamie to wear to the upcoming ball. Having reached the end of the bunker, the party ties up the last loose ends; which includes closing all of the doors they left open, and stealing the warm metal plate under the cauldron in the kitchen, before Lahont decides the safest way to get the book he needs is to grab it and run before whatever trap is probably going to be summoned can kill him. The rest of the party takes shelter in the garden and despite the warning of the ominous voice, Lahont grabs the book. With a massive book golem forming behind him, he dashes for the door, which just slams shut as an animated pile of books slams into it behind him.

As the adventurers trek home, night has fallen, and they avoid ambush by a monster. They do find, however, even more of these eerie holes, which Marzipan is able to look into and see a green pool at the bottom of.

At the end of the expedition, both Jamie and Marzipan gain a renown for their heroics in slaying enemies, and the party is much richer in a wild assortment of magical items, if not in cash, as they identify the Horn of the Wandering Prince (a magical horn that can cast sleet storm, gust of wind, and daylight once per time passes as well as summon a bounty of fruit) and the Satchel of Requirement (a smaller bag of holding that can produce several adventuring items that are automatically replenished). The loot is divided as follows:

Lahont received what was found to be a +1 magical crossbow, the translation book, and the paper cards

Marzipan took the horn, the herbs he collected, and the hot rocks from the kitchen

Calliope took the golem parts and the dark bronze

Nexrin took the satchel

Jamie took 100 gp in cash

And the party decided to hold the arcanium and purple gems in common until a use or value could be determined for them, at which point Jamie and Nexrin would be given a larger share of the cash.