Beneath Caldwell Castle (Session 3)

Summary

The party continued exploring Caldwell Castle and entered a ruined library, where they quickly defeated two attacking fire beetles. Herbert removed four of their glowing glands to use as light sources. Searching the damaged books, Lex discovered an old map of the White Box Valley that supported earlier information about the Palace of the Silver Princess.

Elanduil found a wizard’s journal explaining how to bypass the arcane lock protecting the lower vaults. Herbert followed its instructions, speaking “resurgem” while tracing the door’s rune counterclockwise, and the magical seal vanished.

Beyond the door, the party discovered a trapdoor leading into tunnels beneath the castle. Unable to take Bill, their war donkey, they left him above with food and water. After the party descended, the trapdoor slammed shut and disappeared, leaving no way back. In an abandoned underground armory, they encountered a mimic disguised as an iron-bound chest. Elanduil’s hand and Lex’s sword became stuck to it during the battle, but the group destroyed the creature and recovered forty-five silver pieces.

Deeper in the passages, Lex stumbled into a nearly invisible gelatinous creature. The party surrounded and killed it, finding seventy-two gold pieces and a glowing dagger within its remains. The dagger bore the Elven word “Amar,” which turned its light on and off when spoken. Later, in an unfinished excavation chamber, the group gathered six hundred silver pieces and one hundred fifty gold pieces scattered among the rubble.

The party next encountered two ragged men named Maris and Cyril, who claimed to be scholars researching a cure for swamp rot. Lex sensed evil within them, and the men attacked when confronted. Mira killed Maris, while Lex and Faela defeated Cyril. Herbert recovered sleep and magic missile spells from their spellbooks to use as scrolls. The group then found another locked door and a long staircase that appeared to lead nowhere, concluding that some mechanism elsewhere in the vault might activate something down there. Returning toward the entrance, they opened another chest, but three concealed darts fired at Lex, striking him twice before Auriel healed him.

A rough hallway beyond the trapped chest led to three undead creatures that Auriel identified as thouls. During the difficult battle, Faela killed one, but another struck Auriel down. Herbert gave her a healing potion while Lex used his healing touch, and the others finished destroying the remaining thouls. The party recovered one hundred electrum pieces and four valuable gems from the chamber. Exhausted and nearly out of healing magic, they moved the bodies aside and rested there under guard. Nothing disturbed them during the night, leaving them ready to continue deeper beneath Caldwell Castle despite having no clear route back to the surface.

That is where the session ended!

Please start the recorder.

Exp: 270 + 27 =297

Detail

The party continued exploring Caldwell Castle by opening a room they had not yet searched. Inside, they found ruined bookshelves along the north and south walls, moth-eaten books, and two small fire beetles resting upon a dusty carpet. The creatures immediately attacked. One struck Auriel, but Elanduil, Lex, Mira, and the others fought back. They finished them off on short order.

After the battle, Auriel and Faela healed the wounded. Herbert explained that the glowing glands of the fire beetles could continue producing light for several days. Using a borrowed dagger, he removed four glands from the dead creatures and placed them in a container so the party could use them as a source of light.

The group searched the remains of the books. Most were ruined, but Lex discovered an old historical map of the White Box Valley. The map showed Castle Caldwell and suggested that the valley lay somewhere beyond the Black Peak Mountains and the Duke’s Keep. Although the old map did not match modern maps precisely, it supported the information they had previously discovered about the Palace of the Silver Princess.

Elanduil found an old leather-bound journal that appeared to have belonged to a wizard who had once lived in the castle. Among its notes was a passage explaining how to bypass the arcane lock protecting the lower vaults if the key had been misplaced. The lock could be opened by speaking the word “resurgent” while tracing the rune counterclockwise.

Before returning to the magical door, the party searched two additional rooms. Both were empty bedrooms filled with trash and abandoned beds. They then returned to the door marked with the glowing sigil. Herbert traced the rune counterclockwise while saying “resurgent.” The pulsing sigil faded away, leaving the door safe to open.

Beyond the door was a cramped storage room filled with ancient dust, cobwebs, rotted linens, cracked jars, and rusted tools. In the southeastern corner, they discovered a heavy wooden trapdoor bound with iron. Lex could not lift it alone, but with Auriel’s assistance, he managed to pull it open. Beneath it was a passage descending into rough, cavern-like tunnels.

The party realized that Bill, the war donkey, could not be lowered through the narrow opening, so they left him above with food and water. Auriel descended first, followed by the others. Once the last person entered, the trapdoor slammed shut and disappeared. They could neither see nor feel where it had been. With no way back, the party was forced to continue forward.

The air below the castle was cool, heavy, and still, carrying the smell of sulfur and old masonry. The walls were closely set, and every footstep echoed through the narrow corridor. The passage opened into an abandoned guard post or armory filled with shattered weapon racks, rusted spearheads, decayed leather, and thick dust. In the far corner stood an iron-bound oak chest that appeared untouched by age.

Elanduil examined the chest for traps but found none. When he touched it, his hand became stuck to its surface, and the chest opened a mouth and attacked. The chest was a living creature disguised as treasure. Lex struck it, but his sword became stuck as well. Elanduil managed to pull himself free, while Mira, Faela, Auriel, and the others attacked. Mira badly wounded the creature, and Faela killed it with a sling stone. Inside its remains, they found forty-five silver pieces.

The party continued deeper into the underground passages. At the bottom of another set of stairs, Lex walked directly into a nearly invisible gelatinous creature. The creature attacked him, and the group quickly surrounded it. Faela struck it with her staff, Lex and Auriel moved in to attack while Mira and Elanduil attacked from the corridor. The creature struck Faela and tried to paralyze her, but she resisted. Elanduil finally killed it.

Inside the gelatinous remains were seventy-two gold pieces and a glowing dagger. An Elven word, “Amar,” was engraved upon its hilt. When spoken, the word caused the dagger’s light to turn off or on. Faela helped identify the inscription, and the group fashioned a way for Lex to carry the dagger so that it could provide light without occupying his sword hand.

After healing their injuries, the party continued along the passages. They found empty chambers, descending stairs, and another locked door that Elanduil could not open. In an unfinished excavation chamber, they discovered hundreds of coins scattered openly among loose stones and rubble. After spending considerable time gathering them, they collected six hundred silver pieces and one hundred fifty gold pieces.

The next room contained two beds, a couple of chairs, and a crude laboratory along the northern wall. Two men in ragged robes were working at a bench surrounded by basic tools and common chemicals. They introduced themselves as Maris and Cyril and claimed to be scholars studying vapors and attempting to create a cure for swamp rot.

Maris invited the party closer and tried to draw Lex's attention to a piece of parchment. Lex used his divine senses and detected evil. When he challenged the men, Cyril reached inside his robe, and Maris drew a dagger. A short battle followed. Mira killed Maris with an arrow, and Lex and Faela defeated Cyril. Searching the bodies and laboratory, the party found two spell books with spells that Herbert already had so he tore them out to use as scrolls. One was a sleep and the other a magic missile spell.

The group explored another corridor and found a door they could not unlock. Farther on, a long staircase descended but appeared to lead nowhere. The party carefully searched the stairs, walls, floor, and ceiling but found no opening or hidden mechanism. They concluded that something elsewhere in the underground complex might activate the passage.

The party returned to a room near where they had entered the lower vault as it was called. In the chamber that it led to, they found another chest. They were all concerned about it being another mimic so Lex moved forward to check it out. He used his sword to lift the latch on it and try to open it. Three darts shot out at him with two of them striking. Auriel used a healing spell on him.

In the back of that room was a rough hewn hallway that went up some deep stairs. At the top, they entered a chamber containing three humanoid figures. When the figures turned toward the light and attacked, Lex sensed that they were undead. Auriel identified them as thouls. The creatures fought with claws and attempted to paralyze those they struck.

The battle was difficult. Faela killed one thoul, but another badly wounded Auriel and brought her down. Herbert gave her a healing potion while Lex laid on hands. Between the two, they healed her enough that she could stand but Herbert pulled her away before she did. Mira, Elanduil, Faela, and Lex continued fighting until the final thoul was destroyed.

After the battle, the party searched the chamber and found one hundred electrum pieces and four gems. Two of the gems were worth one hundred gold pieces each, while the other two were worth ten gold pieces each. Exhausted and nearly out of healing magic, the party decided to rest in the chamber. They moved the bodies aside, arranged watches, and remained alert throughout the night.

Despite the darkness and the unsettling silence beneath Caldwell Castle, nothing disturbed them. The party completed its rest safely, preparing to continue deeper into the underground passages with no clear path back to the surface.

That is where the session ended!

Please start the recorder.

Exp: 270 + 27 = 297