Barrowmaze Part One: The Barrowmoor

[Raistlinmc]

Zaivie bursts out laughing in one rushing guffaw.

"Yeah, cuz whatever's down there's sure ta be jus' fine," she says, jerking her thumb at the black hole before them that appears to literally lead into one's worst nightmares, "but trees an' spiders? Now that shit's scary!"

Jibes or no, she does at least light a torch and offers to go first if the boys were too scared of the open tomb before them all.

[Ephkabey]

Putting his head in his hands again, the young priest asks, "You all feel that, right?"

He looks back and forth to his companions, "The oppression? Just like what is emanating from the obelisk. The strangling darkness? Like the abyss knocked you down and is stifling you...like it's sitting on your face?" Serpe casts a sideways scowl at Zaivie, anticipating the retort, "No, not like that."

"Like your soul is being smothered..." he says almost drunkenly as he wobbles and locks a gaze with the blackness in the portal.

"I don't think there are any gods in this place...least not any who have a care for the living things of the world. I...we shouldn't go down there." He takes a step back.

"Call it 'fun' if you want, Zaivie, but we definitely call it something else in the Mysterium...I think it lives here and we're not welcome...and...if we don't have the tools to fight giant scorpions, I'm not certain we have the tools to deal with what's down there."

[Raistlinmc]

Zaivie opens her mouth and closes it again because, yes, she very much was going to make a retort as soon as the priest said sitting on your face. Hells, how could she pass up an opportunity like that?!

And yet, instead, she doesn't quip this time; instead, she listens. And, beyond that, she feels (or tries to anyway). Gods, these goody-goody boys of hers must be starting to rub off on her...

(OOC: Cai, I don't know if a roll is needed here, but Zaivie is genuinely trying to pause and reach out with her senses to see if she can feel any of what Ephkabey's character is talking about. Up until now, she hasn't felt any darkness or oppression, but up until now, she wasn't trying to either. Just trying to see if she can sense it if she tries to be aware of it, or if she keeps on thinking the priest is making mountains out of molehills.)

Edited May 2 by Raistlinmc (see edit history)

[Sellsword]

"This is why we're here, after all," Dougal says with feigned confidence. He tries his best to ignore the skulls littering the area. "I've got the routine at this point. Someone toss in a torch, I'll head in first, hopefully someone follows me up in case I run into trouble. Could be that these skulls belong to whoever opened the door, maybe there's still something of value inside."

While others make preparations, Dougal will scout about the area to see if there are any trinkets among the littered bones. And once he is ready to descend into the mound, he'll tap the stones ahead as usual with his staff, staying as low as possible. Though they've yet to encounter any, he's developing an unreasonable anxiety over the possibility of arrow traps.

 

[Raistlinmc]

Zaivie, on Black Dougal's word and cue, tosses her newly-lit torch in as instructed.

"Right behind ya, Mr. Dougal!" she says, already unsheathing her weapon in preparation for what may very well come next.

[Excior]

Passing the hill and the standing stone dedicated to Nergal felt like stepping into another world as if the mists had parted to reveal a sacred site. The next burial mound over was adorned with smaller standing stones, some barely a few feet high, scattered across the hill every few dozen feet, with some obscured by marsh grass. Allen could almost discern a trail leading towards the mound.

As the group drew closer to the mound, it appeared as if fingers of bone were protruding from the ground, as if trying to crush the entrance to this particular burial mound.

Listening to the conversation around him, Allen retrieved another bottle of lamp oil from his pack. He filled the lantern and lit it, readying himself to enter the mound. With his shield at the ready and the lantern held firmly in his weapon hand, he responded to Tharnakalian's question, "We will not know the answer to that until we get inside."

Surveying the skulls and bones scattered around, he remarked, "I have no idea. One skull to me looks pretty much like another."

As they approached the entrance of the tomb, Allen fell into step behind Zaivie and Dougal. "This whole place is heavy with the oppression of the undead," he observed solemnly. "Perhaps we can find the source and put a stop to it once and for all. But to do that, we must enter the Maze."

[cailano]

The Great Mound

You set up outside the large barrow mound much as you have the others. You find a place for your mule to graze on marsh grass, and Tamson guards any gear you leave behind with his bow.

You light your torches and lanterns and prepare to descend the stairwell.

Try as you might, none of you can feel the sensation Serpe describes. Just hearing him say it makes you a little nervous, but that's all.

Zavie throws her torch into the room, revealing more detail.

The stairwell is short, only a ten-foot descent. The chamber at its base has a stone floor and seems larger than the other barrow mounds you've explored. You won't be able to tell how large without going down.

Nothing seems to be moving inside.

 

[cailano]

The Hole in the Floor

Carefully, you make your way down the stairs and into the burial chamber. It is sixty-feet square and the walls and floor are made from cut stone. Four sturdy columns support the ceiling.

The most interesting feature of the room is a hole in the floor. Stradling it is a rusty, six-foot tripod with a block and tackle. A rope hangs from it and descends into the darkness below.

Someone has been in this room recently. There are several sets of footprints in the dust.

What do you do?

[matt_s]

Tharnakalian picks up the torch that Zaivie had thrown. Finders keepers, he thought. Bit of mirth always came in handy.

Holding the torch in one hand and his weapon in the other, he slowly approached the hole, and then peered over the edge into the darkness below, waiting to see what the flickering torch revealed below.

Did he hear shuffling feet, spoken words, or more sinister things? Was there anything to see below?

Something ain't right. he said. What kind of expedition doesn't leave a guard or nothing behind. If we were brigands, we could just cut the rope behind them and leave them stuck down there. Forever. We know some folks been lost out here, and lost out there recently, perhaps recently enough for the dust to linger. What say you?

[Raistlinmc]

Zaivie looks confused and frowns thoughtfully before responding.

"Well...ta be honest, Tharny, I can't say my firs' instinct was ta cut th' rope and leave 'em - whoever they are - down there ferever...but now tha' ya mention it, don't it seem like a good idea pull th' rope up an' ta wait an' see who comes back fer it? If'n it's folks we don't wanna kill an' rob, we'll pass th' rope back down to 'em; if'n it's th' other kind, well, I reckon we won't then."

[LarsWester]

---

HP 5/5 | AC 16 | Base To Hit +1 | StatsStr 14 (+1)
Int  6 (-1)
Wis  11 (0)
Dex 16 (+2)
Con 15 (+1)
Cha 11 (0) | SavesDeath/Poison.....13
Wands................14
Paralyze/Stone..13
Dragon Breath...16
Spells.................15 | Thieves Abilities Open Locks .......25%
Remove Traps....20%
Pick Pockets.......30%
Move Silently.....25%
Climb Walls........80%
Hide...................10%
Listen.................30% | Bullets/Silver x20/5

---

Thomas squeezes in between Zaivie and Tharnakalian peering down into large hole. Listening for any sounds for a bit before speaking Thomas states "Well I think it's my turn to go first Dougal. I'll go down there and see what I can discover. If you hear me screaming and feel a sharp tug on the rope pull me up." If neither Tharnakalian or Thomas heard anything to stop him Thomas will lower himself down the rope into whatever lay below. Once at the bottom he will light a candle keeping it's flame partially covered by his hand until he gets the sense he is alone.

 

 

[Sellsword]

"Just call up when you need me, Thomas, and I'll be right behind you!" In the meantime, Dougal withdraws his own coil of rope, looking to the columns to see if he can't loop it around. "Can't hurt to have a backup!" he says, dropping the loose end into the hole behind Thomas.

OOC: How far down does the hole go?

 

[Excior]

Allen followed his companions down the steps, holding his lantern aloft to illuminate the expansive chamber. A low whistle escaped his lips as he took in the size of the room. "This is the biggest we have found," he remarked, his voice echoing throughout the chamber.

His attention was drawn to the center of the room, where a massive hole had been smashed into the floor. A rusty tripod stood over it, with a block and tackle suspended from its frame, its rope disappearing into the abyss below. "Look, somebody has been here recently. I bet this is the entrance to the Barrow Maze," Allen observed, noting the signs of recent activity.

As the rest of his companions filtered into the room, some appeared eager to descend into the hole. "Wait, let's search this room first before we start to make our way down," Allen cautioned, his tone marked by a newfound sense of wariness. "I think one of us warriors should go down first in case there is trouble."

 

OOC: Allen will start to search the room for anything of value, he will look at the walls floor, and roof of the mound to see if there are any markings or secret compartments or other furniture.

[LarsWester]

---

HP 5/5 | AC 16 | Base To Hit +1 | StatsStr 14 (+1)
Int  6 (-1)
Wis  11 (0)
Dex 16 (+2)
Con 15 (+1)
Cha 11 (0) | SavesDeath/Poison.....13
Wands................14
Paralyze/Stone..13
Dragon Breath...16
Spells.................15 | Thieves Abilities Open Locks .......25%
Remove Traps....20%
Pick Pockets.......30%
Move Silently.....25%
Climb Walls........80%
Hide...................10%
Listen.................30% | Bullets/Silver x20/5

---

Thomas already descending the hung rope from the block and tackle hears the warnings of Allen but continues his descent with a half whispered "Please be quiet up there."

Thinking to himself about the odds of Allen locating something in the room obviously gone over at least once if not twice by other people. They noticed this mound had been broken into days ago but the footprints above seemed to indicate a more recent treading of others. Not knowing what he was going to find at the end of this rope Thomas continued to lower himself into the unknown.

 

[Ephkabey]

As he watches his group enter the mound, Serpe rolls his eyes and looks at the heavens and rhetorically blasphemes beneath his breath, then grips the symbol of the Lady of Magic around his neck and offers a short prayer, "Please watch over this group, if you're able, they know not what they do."

He then claps Tamson on the shoulder, "Well, thanks for your guidance my good man. There doesn't seem to be a shred of survival instinct amongst the lot of these...fellows. My travel companions, that is. So I guess we're going in. If we're not out by dusk, you know what to do...and if you don't see us in a week's time, or perhaps even a fortnight, consider Kiki" he affectionately scritches the mule, "and the cart to be yours. A reward for all your hard work and for saving our butts more than once. Be sure Brother Othar knows of our fate, if that's what comes to pass. Bollo will probably also want to know his extra revenue stream has dried up...and perhaps Turgen...and maybe Karg." Serpe decides to finally stop delaying and he swallows the lump of fear in his throat.

Hefting his pack onto his back, the young cleric turns and blows out his frustration and anxiety from puffed up cheeks and marches toward the stairs descending into the mound, exaggerating his movements and forcing his feet forward in spite of the fear in his breast, looking somewhat like a toy soldier marching to the precipice of a child's bedside table.

Once down into the burial chamber, he examines the four columns and musters a sense of bravado, mentioning to his party, "Yes. Yes. The evil emanating across the swamp definitely seems to be originating from this place. 'Tis a shame you godless types can't feel it." He rolls his tongue around his mouth in contemplation. "Tastes a bit like vomit tickling the back of your throat." He then moves to the edge of the hole and peers into the abyss, witnessing Thomas descending down the rope, he whispers, "It's better than Bollo's breakfast, at least."