Tomb of the Serpent Kings (Session Report 1)

Session 1 (August 24th, 2021)

Game Time: August 26th to August 27th

Characters

Finn (werewolf 1) - A philologist from the suburbs of Karst, secretly a werewolf looking for a cure.

Hickory Wanderwood (elf 1) - A changeling from Colwick who dreams of adventures beyond his sleepy village home.

Quintus Livia (magic-user 1) - A snooty wizard from Karst sent on an unenviable research trip by his superiors.

Raesighn (specialist 1) - A young woman from the wilds who wears the pelt of a bear who was once her dear friend.

A few days travel south of Usk lies the village of Colwick. A relatively prosperous farming community enjoys a peaceful existence and the safety that proximity to the small city of Usk has provided. But other than the occasional traveller at the local public house, there is little that goes on in Colwick that interests Hickory Wanderwood(?). But this particular evening would prove to bring an unexpected offering to the auspicious child of the fae who had rarely set foot outside his small village.

For it was on this evening that three strangers would happen upon the Golden Pheasant pub, each for reasons of their own. A forlorn young man named Finn, who found himself stood up on a date. The misguided linguist decided an attempt at drowning his sorrows was in order, particularly considering the long distance he would need to travel to return to his home just outside of Karst.

        Meanwhile, another academic, though from a very different vocation, had just arrived in Colwick after a long journey from Karst. This man was one Quintus Livia, a magician and member of Somerset College (?), one of Karst’s premier schools of arcana. His school had determined that ruins in the area around Colwick might be attached to a historical matter being studied by one of the more decorated members of the school, and as a research assistant, Quintus had been sent to do the legwork. This was much to his chagrin, as Quintus clearly preferred not to waste time in “the boonies.” But a pledge to one of Karst’s guilds of magic comes with many costs.

Finally, a young woman who had spent the last couple months on the run chose to enter the village for a meal. Raesighn was accustomed to living in the wild, having grown up in the barbaric territories of the north raised by bears. Over her shoulders she wore the pelt of her dear friend, Jasper, a bear who lost his life not long ago. It was her deepest wish to find some means of righting the wrong that had befallen Jasper.

        And so these four souls happened to meet and share a few drinks in the rustic hall of the Golden Pheasant, and reach a mutual agreement that it was in each of their interests to investigate the ruins rumored to be found outside of Colwick. They were even able to get a free round of drinks by wagering a story to the bartender Dax. Hickory had often seen Dax agree to this arrangement when travelers could provide a good yarn, and so Raesighn was put in the position of the storyteller. She told a story, perhaps drawn from her own life, of a child raised by bears. Dax was won over, and his young assistant Marco gladly brought some ale, water and lemon-worm tea to the guests.

However, their conversation was easily overheard in the small confines of the public house. A foreign man in strange garb approached their table and introduced himself as Vardis of Eskana, a country far east over the sea. Though his accent was odd, Vardis was polite and his offer simple: he claimed to be in possession of a map that detailed how to find the ruins and what they contained. His interest, he said, was both historical and spiritual. He had a task that brought him many miles over the sea to these lands.

Of course, Vardis was unwilling to produce the map on the spot, and so the four decided they needed some time to discuss whether or not to trust him. Vardis agreed and said he would await their decision. Having little more reason to trust each other than Vardis, the four decided it might not hurt to have another pair of hands, particularly since he claimed to know the way. Finn and Quintus were won over by the man’s polite demeanor, though Raesighn and Hickory were still suspicious. Raesighn even suggested that it might be better to sneak into Vardis’s room and steal his map. In the end, Hickory and Raesighn decided to go out for some air while Quintus went to tell Vardis his offer had been accepted. The five companions would meet at first light by the well in town square before they set off.

First light came and most of the companions were ready. Hickory generously offered to host Raesighn, and even provided a breakfast of nuts and dried fruit. Finn woke to find he had fallen asleep at his reading desk, his face planted in a textbook (again). Quintus, having completed his rigorous grooming regime, arrived last and asked where Vardis was. No sooner had the four begun to once again question this man’s intentions did the subject appear. He explained that he had simply arranged for supplies to be held for him at the general store ahead of time and had been just made the pickup.

With that, the expedition began. They took the road eastward out of the village for a few hours as the sun began its ascent. Then, at Vardis’s prompting, they turned off the road into the woods, following an old hunter’s trail for several hours. Still suspicious of this Vardis’s claims, several more attempts were made to push Vardis to share his map. But Vardis still resisted, furthermore asserting that all the notes had been made in his own native tongue. As the party soon arrived at the hillside where the entrance to the ruins were to be found, the line of questioning was dropped.

Vardis lit a torch and led the way. The group found themselves in a long hallway composed of a rather crude architecture with white roots breaking through the ceiling. Along the hallway were four small rooms. Each room contained a simple wooden coffin. Vardis and Quintus opened the first coffin they encountered. It contained a brittle clay statue of a warrior with the features of a serpent. Upon breaking the statue, a cloud of poisonous gas was released, slightly harming Vardis and Quintus. But inside the statue they found a gold amulet wrapped around the skeleton of a snake.

        The other side-chambers were much the same. Quintus was much more cautious in these rooms, using his staff to break the statues from a distance before retrieving the treasure. One such statue appeared to represent a scholar, and on its hand was fitted a silver ring. Greedily, Quintus snatched the ring, accidentally releasing the poisonous gas trapped inside without maintaining a safe distance. After catching his breath, he placed the ring upon his finger, only to discover that his carefully manicured fingernail grew into two sharp points. Horrified by this change, he hastily removed the ring and watched in horror as his fingernail become suddenly brittle and snapped off.

        Returning to the main hall, Vardis described these statues as evidence of the association of an older culture in this land with shape-changing animal spirits, a remark that made Finn's ears perk up with interest. Before Vardis could say much more, the party reached a set of large doors barred by a great stone weight. Vardis, Hickory and Finn worked together to lift the stone, while Raesighn and Quintus stood back, bow and spell at the ready should anything dangerous be found on the other side. Unfortunately, the group was not expecting danger to come from above. A mechanism attached to the door released a swinging hammer, and though Hickory and Finn were able to dive to the sides, Vardis was not so lucky. The hammer sent him into a collision with the doors, destroying all.

        Shocked by the sudden death of their erstwhile guide, the remaining companions took a moment to mourn before searching his pack, only to find that the map he claimed to possess did not exist. It seemed they were right to suspect him of deceit. From here on they would be their own guides.

        They dusted themselves off and took a look at their surroundings. Three coffins were set against the North wall, and these appeared to be far more ornate than the plain wooden boxes they had already encountered. Eager to see what treasures they might contain, Quintus and Hickory began to lift the lid from the leftmost coffin, only to be caught by surprise when the fanged skeleton inside sprang to life. As these two began to fend off their attacker, sounds from the the remaining coffins indicated other foes had been awakened. Raesighn and Finn rushed to contain the other two coffins, though it was clear they couldn't hold them for very long.

        Fortunately, Quintus got lucky with a magic missile spell, and Hickory was able to help Finn and Raesighn eliminate the other two undead warriors quite methodically. But the group was now exhausted, and rightly frightened by the dangers already encountered in this tomb. It was decided that a retreat to make camp, rest and regroup would be needed before any more progress could be made.