Rllmuk Dungeons and Dragons 5e - Ghosts of Saltm... BZZzzzt - The Curse of Strahd!

[Clipper]

for @Nathan Wind@Captain Kelsten@MDY@Hexx@Mogster@Totile

 

You all arrived at Gracklstugh the Duergar city which is situated on the edge of a massive lake that you can't see the end of. Look at roll20 for the bit of the map you know so far.

You learnt alot so here is the basic info for the three of you that missed the session

---------
-Regions-
---------

Darklake District
-----------------

The main accessible area for allcomers.

There are docks, markets, and shops where Gracklstugh’s commerce and trade are conducted. The many duergar merchants — along with drow, svirfneblin, orcs, and others.

Guards posted at the gates and indeed patrol around are exclusively Duergar.

It is clear that non-duergar are restricted to the Darklake District.

For gossip and a meal, the Shattered Spire tavern is a perfect place - A broken stalagmite juts out from the Darklake about forty feet from the shore, forming the foundation of a tavern built with fungi stalks in a manner similar to a log cabin. A bridge woven of wool allows patrons to cross the water to visit. You got lots of info here from the barman Thirnan which will form alot of the rest of these notes.

Lodging for non-duergar can be had at the Ghohlbrorn’s Lair inn. - This inn is the only establishment in Gracklstugh that accepts non-duergar guests. “Ghohlbrorn” means “bulette” in Dwarvish, and the inn is built inside a small cavern complex beneath the Blade Bazaar at the northern end of the Darklake District. Its halls are cold and damp. A central chamber serves as a dining room, branching out into different small, twisting halls along which the rooms are excavated. It’s dark, cramped, and uncomfortable, but safe and defensible. Ukral rented you 4 rooms for 3 days - 60sp - includes evening meal but not breakfast. You asked why it was named after Bulette's lair with some trepidation only to be told that legend had it that it was a Bulette lair that took many Duergar lives when the city was young but it was defeated and the inn uses the lair now.

BLade's Bazaar - the merchant area

This marketplace is named after the most abundant goods the duergar offer, but the shops here sell almost everything available in the city, along with stalls set up by visiting merchants.

you went to ...

Ordrinna's Oils and Tinctures - friendly Duergar - she offers decent oils and balms nothing terribly exciting. A balm that resists poison (Ordrinna's balm) is popular in underdark sells it in bulk for 50gp for 3 application pot. You all bought two pots each. She sold you a potion of diminuition for only 50gp she thought price was high but you know it isn't. She has extracted natural elements from Duergar that allow them to shrink or grown in size - she is working on a growth version. Similarly some Duergar naturally can turn invisible but she hasn't managed to get hold of samples yet to experiment.

Harda's Armoury - Some Adamantine pieces and a +1 shield. Adamantine prevents critical hits and he was selling a breastplate for 2500gp - a decision for someone. He also had a +1 shield for 1.5k which is very expensive but when offered magical leather armour in trade he said he would have it examined and get back to you. THe armour handed over is the cursed armour.

You also know of these areas in Darklake district but haven't been there

Darklake Brewery

Darklake Docks

Other areas of GRacklstugh and what you learnt from the tavernkeeper THirnan.

Laduguer’s Furrow
-----------------
Most Duergar live there. Duergar live within a societal structure and rarely stray from it. From the bottom thru the miners and guards upto the more respected.

Outsiders are normally forbidden from this area.

Cairngorm Cavern
----------------
The home of the stone giants of Clan Cairngorm. They have a bond/fealty with the Duergar and it's king.

Noone is allowed into the Cairngorm Cavern apart from Stone Giants and the Deepking.

Hold of the Deepking
--------------------
This the palace and grounds for the Deepking who rules.

Themberchaud’s Lair
-------------------

A red Dragon lives to the far south of the City apparently. He helps provide fire for the city forges in exchange for "who knows what".

Rumours are that the dragon's egg was stolen by Gray Ghosts so there is some tension in the city beyond the walls of Darklake district.

Finally you asked about Oedachlo/Illithid recruiting and got this

He says that rumours are that a sizable number of Duergar left about a year ago tempted away by promises of riches. This took 3+ years of infiltrator duergar strangers sowing seeds with them as Duergar in Gracklstugh live very ordered lives and know their place in the hierarchy and can't conceive of leaving it or breaking it. WHen they went their families ostracised them and wont speak of them. In order to find out more the party will need to chat with denizens of main Duergar living area in Laduguers Furrow. To get access? he says you could

1) do a favour for the Deepking?
2) Help out higher up Duertgar with an issue and curry favour?
3) HElp out Stone GIants curry favour with them - they live in Cairngorm caverns?
4) Find the GRey Ghosts who stole an egg  from Themberchaud?

he was quite vague

[Mogster]

After finding out about the Thieves Guild and the missing miners, I really didn't expect to end up actually going with the Fight Club idea, but I'm loving it.

[Captain Kelsten]

We know you get anxious if you don't kill something every day or two...

[Hexx]

On 14/08/2022 at 22:00, Mogster said:

After finding out about the Thieves Guild and the missing miners, I really didn't expect to end up actually going with the Fight Club idea, but I'm loving it.

 

I just want to watch you and Gazes smash each other.

 

Still working out what Step 2 is

[Hexx]

Archibald being sent undercover

 

 

 

[Captain Kelsten]

Oh come on, it's not like you haven't done a bit of sneaky reconnaissance before! You stowed away in a submarine and ended up in hell before - how bad can 40 mins in the restricted part of a duergar city be?

 

Now stop your whining and act like you know what you're doing in there, we have intel to gather!

[MDY]

<Some sort of metaphor> 

[Captain Kelsten]

 

This was Barley. Except he forgot to run away.

 

I updated his mini on HeroForge accordingly...

 

 

RIP Barley, you daft bastard. I'll miss the terrible West Country accent I did for you. 

[Captain Kelsten]

 

Meet Tark Pallidshell, Circle of Spores Druid. He's a fungi to be around. 

[Clipper]

On 22/11/2022 at 23:28, DualSense said:

Did the game end?

No we are still going strong as a party of 7. We mostly communicate on Discord and writing up sessions is too much work for me on top of everything else. The campaign was the Saltmarsh book but it was heavily homebrewed and then left behind and now the entire adventure is homebrewed (hence my lack of time to do writeups).

 

The party have been chasing down an elusive Illithid who originates from the Blightshore far to the west of the sword coast. This illithid has arcane powers and has been working towards becoming an Illitholich. To this end he has enslaved/is controlling a Kraken using two arcane chains that bind him , one in the Nine Hells and one in the Plane of Fire.

The current plan is for the Harpers to dispel one chain in the plane of fire while the party find and dispell the chain in the city of Dis simultaneously. They are currently in Dis and trying to find a Pit fiend called Blordak and a rakshasa called Galabra*. Once they have released the Kraken (hehe) they intend to go to the Illithid's tower called Lunamis on Blightshore to defeat him.

 

 

 

* Galabra was a rakshasa that killed Rafe Recidio ,a dandy who has his soul bound to his rapiers during his demise. The tabaxi in the party has these rapiers and talks to Rafe regularly, Rafe wants revenge on Galabra.

[Nathan Wind]

But at what cost to the poor, foolish Tabaxi? Hmmmmmm? Stay tuned to find out!

 

😮 
 

It’s all terribly exciting.

[Captain Kelsten]

So Rafe was a player character before, not just a pompous prick in a pair of pokers? 

[Clipper]

Just now, Captain Kelsten said:

So Rafe was a player character before, not just a pompous prick in a pair of pokers? 

Nope, Rafe is an npc or a sentient magical item with a story.

 

he was a rakish sort that was a scourge of the ladies. He seduced the wrong woman and ended up killed by the lady’s suitor and cursed to inhabit his own rapiers. 

 

he is sort of a mix of lord flasheart and Leslie Phillips and others. A dandy, a rake, a roister doister and, as you point out, a pompous prick 🙂 

[Nathan Wind]

3 hours ago, Clipper said:

 A dandy, a rake, a roister doister and, as you point out, a pompous prick 🙂 

So wait…are you saying there’s no RPing required when you’re playing him?

 

🫣

[Clipper]

I play to my strengths 

[jonnyalpha]

It's understandable that you don't have time to post write-ups of the game sessions but I'd just like to say I thoroughly enjoyed your session posts. Thank you. 

[Welrain]

you all still playing?

[Clipper]

Yes we are. We are back in the Ghosts of Saltmarsh but it is more bespoke than anything now as we are heading to higher levels (level 12 right now). The world has expanded away from the Sword coast to the East and I have woven in other continents from elsewhere so our world is truly our world now.

 

The latest escapade is a serial killer murder mystery the characters have stumbled across in a grim coastal town called the Styes. A man has been accused and executed for a series of murders over the last 6 months but certain prominent town members believe he was not the culprit and that there is a conspiracy afoot. THe party investigated a couple of sources and these led them to a member of the Town council called Mr Dory. Under the cover of night they investigated his warehouse and found it guarded by manticores and a red Slaad. The combat is brief and explosive as the warehouse is in the alchemists district - the combat caused barrels to fall and ignite causing a cascade effect burning down the entire three storey interior.

 

THe party retreated back to their inn for the night and are now deciding how best to continue their "under the radar" "stealthy" investigation

 

 

 

 

[Captain Kelsten]

Did you kill that damn, dirty illithid yet? 

[Mogster]

The stealthy investigating we started by kicking down the warehouse door. All in all it could have gone a lot worse.

[Clipper]

to be fair Ryken did successfully pick the lock of the warehouse stealthily only for it then to be kicked down anyway

 

[Clipper]

25 minutes ago, Captain Kelsten said:

Did you kill that damn, dirty illithid yet? 

no the "big bad" is still out there however the party are ont he same coastal shoreline as his tower (apparently)