Saturday, July 23, 2016

Session Final: The Barrier Peaks Expedition: Alien mind eaters, The Blue Death and escape



The Barrier Peaks Expedition: Alien mind eaters, The Blue Death and escape
Name
Player
Race
Class
Present
Survived
Replaced
Blake
Carl
Human
Bard
N
Y
N
Catherine Lastation
Chris
Human
Oracle
N
Y
N
Faolan Ironhand
Glen
Dwarf
Paladin
N/Y
Y
N
Cecilia
John L
Human
Wizard
Y
Y
N
Goran Stonecrucher
Guest Player
Dwarf
Fighter
N/A
Y
N
Halvar Gunnarson
Cory
Dwarf
Ranger
N
Y
N
Menyw Daolg
Danielle
Elf
Fighter
Y
Y
N
Ranold Winterhare
Tim (T.J.)
½ Elf
Magus
Y
Y
N
Ruis
Johnunce
½ Drow
Magus
N
Y
N
Thadious Bullskin
Mike K.
Human
Wizard
Y
Y
N
Mrs. Page
Mike’s npc bard
½ Elf
Bard
N/A
N
N
The Homunculus
Mike’s critter

Critter
N/A
Y
N
6/17/2016           







After healing the wounds cause by the muscle bound golem. The team headed out and to the open door spotted to the southwest. Carefully peering through the door revealed a large theater like room with a large stage along the southern wall. Moving with caution they passed down the aisle in the center of the room making their way to the stage. As the explorers advanced they noticed an open door just to the east of the stage. Wanting to inspected behind the curtain on the stage the team advanced towards the stage as the approached within 20ft of the stage a wave of overwhelming psychic energy assaulted them. The force of the attack stunning all in the group except Faolan, Thadious, and Cecilia. 

Caught flatfooted by the sudden mental assault the three looked for their attacker only the have a dark green egg land in the middle of the group as a whole releasing a vile gas that ate away at the health of the less hardy members the team. Seeing the danger the gas posed to her Cecilia cast levitation upon herself and rose out of the gas to look for the attacker while Thadious and Faolan moved to get the others out of the deadly gas cloud. As Cecilia rose above the cloud a volley of burning rays of light struck her gouging deep burns into her skin.  Thinking she spotted her attacker she launches a volley of Magic Missiles only to have them shatter against a field of resistance. Meanwhile Faolan and Thadious manage to drag themselves out as well as those that were within easy reach out of the gas while leaving the Blake, Catherine, Ruis, Halvar, and Goran still within the cloud. A second volley of burning light forced Cecilia to retreat down behind the cloud. Thadious guessing at the location of the source of the attacks lobbed a fireball through the gap in the curtains with unknown results as the gas cloud started to fade while Faolan ran to Blake to retrieve an artifact that also shot burning beams of light to return fire with. No longer seeing Cecilia the mysterious attacker open fire on Thadious wounding him gravely and wrecking his fragile health even more just as he launch a second fireball causing a fire behind their attacker illuminating him for the first time. 

There in the blueish-orange glow stood an Illithid, a dreaded mind eater, though finally having a target to attack Faolan’s fear of the horror prevented him from closing to engage it in melee combat, his strength, seeing that magic may be the only answer to dealing with the creature unleashed an arrow of raw holy law only to have the spell shatter to the ether against the creature unholy strong denial of holy might.  Thadious dry of mystic fire hurled a volley of mystic darts landing solid blows to the horror only to be ravaged by its weapons burning beams again. Faolan seeing the danger Thadious was in started casting a focus intensive healing spell to aid Thadious, meanwhile Cecilia seeing Thadious success with his mystic darts assailed the horror with her own though the first volley had no effect. The Horror choose to change weapons and fire a new artifact that ravaged Faolan’s Armor and his health but did not break his focus despite multiple wounds that it inflicted on him. Seeing that they needed time Cecilia crafted a wall of pure force along the front of the curtain to block the creature’s attacks as the cloud finally cleared and Faolan finished his prayer restoring some of Thadious’ shattered health. With the rest of the team still stunned and magic running low the three moved to the east door but just as they started that way the tentacle horror appeared at the door and rained a volley of burning light at Cecilia nearly slaying her outright. Finally having an opening for her most powerful spell Cecilia unleashes a torrent of artic death at the Illithid overwhelming it resistance to the arcane and catching by surprise. Thadious and Faolan followed suit with burning bolts of fire and light. 

The resulting assault destroyed the Horror head and chest cavity leaving the horror a horrid mess. After a quick search of the body by Thadious while Faolan started using his holy touch to stop the effects of the poison gas on those affected, which except for the dwarves was everyone, and Catherine spreading some healing waves the team retreated to the lair of the muscle golem and looked for a safe place to camp.

 Finding only a trash and mold filled room with tall metal chest in it Ranold “flash fried” the room with a volley of fireballs to clean it out and the group made camp there in the ashes and inspected the loot from the Illithid. While going through the items Ranold noticed a scrape of the strange horn-like material with odd markings on it on closer inspection of the scrape it was discovered to be a map of the level they were on with area like food and a clearly marked exit in the Illithid language. Halvar’s helmet allow the team to read it and in the morning of with spells reloaded and wounds healed the team made a bee line to the exit and freedom heedless of the Illithid’s warning note about the large golem guarding the room the exit was in. 

At the door the team got into their normal door enter stations and set to enter. Ronald had a grey card at the ready to counter any hostile action from the golem and opened the door. The room was a large cargo room with many empty stasis cages like the one the Couatls were in. Ronald and Faolan both noted a huge blue Bulette in one but as it was in a cage though nothing of it as the 8 large multi-armed golems before them seemed more imposing at the time. Thinking they were off as the golems did not react to the team they boldly headed to the large door on the south wall. When they reached the center of the room the golem strange eyes lit up and they reached for the team. Ranold quickly flashed the grey card they had, but to no effect as the golem grappled the team. As member struggled to escape the golem’s grasp the great metal constructs marched towards the great door and as it opened started tossing the team out. Bruised but alive the team started to brush themselves off when Catherine screamed a warning as two of the golem reappeared at the door and hurled Bulette into the center of the team.   

Everyone scrambled to get out of the way of massive beast as it came down the impact knock many of them off their feet. Worst still the golems had manage to toss it between a majority of the team and the only exit to the small ravine they had been tossed into. Seeing the danger that its location, plus its proximity to Catherine, Blake, and Cecilia, Ranold, Menyw, Halvar, Ruis, and Goran charges the beast from multiple sides. The smell of ozone fills the air as Menyw and Ruis draw blood and Halvar smashes it with his shield but fails to move the massive beast away from the spell casters. In a roaring blur of white and blue the Bulette counterattacks leaving Ruis down and the others sorely wounded. Ranold fails to score a hit as Faolan reaches his side and Halvar scores a solid slam but while shifting the beast he  only move it a handful of feet from the casters, with the creature surrounded by the fighters the mages were having a hard time targeting their more destructive spells safely at it and the lesser magics they were casting seemed to have no effect. The Bulette’s next blur of attacks removed both Halvar, Goran, and Menyw as threats leaving only Faolan and Ranold to protect the casters. Ranold remembers that he still had a few charges left in his “lazy beam” weapon and readies it to fire as Faolan launches a resounding volley of attacks with his Hammer but fails to drop the beast, steps just out of the way of the “lazy beam’s” effect as Ranold fired. To both of their horror the artifact has no effect on the bulette as it ripped apart Ranold. Catherine hurled healing magic at Faolan and shouted for him to get Ranold to her as Blake did his best to keep her from running closer to the Blue Death machine as he had started calling it in his song of courage. 

Finally seeing his true Paladin calling Faolan grabbed Ranold broken body from the jaws of the Bulette at hurled it at Catherine as he slammed his hammer into the side of the creature’s head. The Bulette did not take the loss of its meal kindly and snap of its lighting filled jaws bite Faolan in half. Thadious seeing an opening launched a fireball at the beast as Cecilia seeing that the fighters of the team were all dead or dying invoked a 30ft wall of mystic ice between the Bulette and the remainder of the team, and rose 40ft into the air. Hoping that the wall would slow the beast and by Catherine time both Thadious and Cecilia hurled more fireballs at the beast. Catherine seeing that Ranold was close to death cast “Breath of Life” getting on his feet just as the Bulette, much to Cecilia’s Horror, Leaped over the Wall of Ice. Ranold seeing the danger called deeply of his magus skills and launched a insanely suicidal attack down the creature’s open jaws. The bravery of Ranold will be song by Blake for a long time to come as while the creature’s jaws destroyed his body and his life his mighty Blade Acidic Thunder cleaved the Bulette’s head from its body killing the beast. 

Gathering their living and dead Catharine, Thadious, Blake, and Cecilia head out away from the metal tower of Horror Vowing never to return!

Thus Ends the Expedition to Barrier Peaks
Thank you for reading.
There will be a 5 month hiatus in post as I ready for our next game
  Shadowrun. Title to be announced

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