Session 33: Zombies, a Gargoyle and Blaze is Shrunk

The adventurers encounter zombies, a gargoyle and a trap that shrinks Blaze with a cloud of steam.  

This write up is from Kay's notes from our June 27, 2024 session. Since our group is scattered around the country, we used Discord for our voice communication and Roll20 for our virtual tabletop. Thanks to JoJo for the screen shots.

Continued from: Session 32 - The Ochre Jelly

Date: May 21, 3517

Level 2: The Demon’s Gullet

Noon
As Artie worked to unlock the door on the north side of the hallway, Parahelia heard shuffling sounds coming from the east, at the T-intersection. Blaze responded with a flaming sphere at the intersection and Artie moved to the west to guard our rear.  

Three zombies walked through the fire sphere, ignoring the heat and emerged steaming. Elron yelled to get in the room on the north side so we could hole up there. The rest of the group ignored him and decided to fight in the hall.

Elron came out and used his sling to hit for a lot of damage on the first zombie. We noticed that these zombies were faster and apparently more intelligent than the ones we previously fought. Breena used her crossbow on the first zombie, killing it.

Blaze moved back down the hallway to the west and moved the fire sphere into the second and third zombies. Artie cast fire bolt at the third zombie, hitting it, and then hit it again with another fire bolt for more damage. Parahelia advanced and hit the second zombie with her sword and then hit it with spiritual hammer from behind, causing it to be so damaged we wondered how it was still standing.

The third zombie walked around the fire sphere and turned to face Parahelia. Both remaining zombies attacked her. The third one used a bite and slam attack combination on her for a lot of damage.

Lark shot his crossbow at the third zombie, damaging it. Elron used his sling of death on the second zombie, Blaze hit the second zombie with her fire sphere while it was still trying to kill Parahelia. Breena’s crossbow bolt missed, caught fire going through the flaming sphere, and she moved back. Blaze hit the second zombie with the flaming sphere for more damage, but it was still moving.

Parahelia hit the zombie with her sword and spiritual hammer for more damage. Lark guarded the rear.

The second zombie tried to bite Parahelia, hitting her for damage, and tried to slam her but missed. Elron moved closer to the fight and used his sling on the second zombie for a lot of damage; finally, it seems dead dead.

1:10 PM
The zombies are now pretty dead and the fight’s over. Parahelia went to the T-intersection; there is a hallway going north, while the main hallway continued east. Blaze looked into the room Artie had opened earlier; it’s a round room with a statue in the middle, mounted on a dais with three steps. Its armor is carved in evil-looking runes and is wearing a helmet with ram’s horns.

Elron searched the zombies’ bodies, finding nothing of value.

The north hallway turned east and entered into a room with a 60-ft-high ceiling. It was a half-circle with the hallway on the south side, and there were gargoyles in niches around the circumference. As we examined the gargoyles, Elron noticed the gargoyle in the north niche started moving. As he shouted a warning, Blaze, Breena, Elron, Parahelia and Rocky entered the chamber. Elron hit it with his sling; stone chips flew off and it became entangled in his snare magic.

Breena cast witch bolt, which missed. Artie moved forward but couldn’t see around the corner at what was going on.

Blaze cast chaos bolt, causing cold damage. The gargoyle tried to break free of the snare, but only took more damage.

Lark followed Artie to the corner.

Elron used his sling again and the stone gargoyle cracked. Breena cast magic missile, shattering the gargoyle into pieces. None of the other gargoyles reacted. The hall continued through the room to the east, then south, then east again with a door on the right.

Elron checked the gargoyle’s niche; in the space behind it he found a potion bottle with red bubbly liquid, a scroll, a topaz, and 27 gps. Elron stored it all in his pack. Breena told Rocky to look behind all the other gargoyles, but they found nothing else.

Artie checked the door on the south side of the hall; no traps, but the door’s rusty hinges caused it to be stuck. It was locked and corroded. Artie took 10 minutes on it. While he was occupied, Blaze went east down the hall, to a south turn and found a door on the west wall. She returned to the others just as Artie got the door unlocked, but it needed more strength to open it.

Blaze gave it a try and succeeded. When the door opened, we saw a short pillar about 5-ft-tall and 5-ft-diameter, with two eyes, a nose, and mouth carved into it. There were two doors visible in the wall behind it to the south. Blaze moved into the room, and the mouth shot out a cloud of steam. Blaze was hit and shrank, along with all her equipment, to one foot in height. The group now worked the problem. The scroll we just found is one of protection against good and evil; the potion needs to be identified, but Sinis had stayed behind in Castle Calaelan. A suggestion is made to put the rocks (gargoyle gravel) into the mouth of the pillar to stop it up.

Elron aimed his sling at the pillar and hit the mouth; a cloud of steam came out weakly around his projectile. We couldn’t find a trigger.

Blaze was still tiny after ten minutes; usually enlarge/shrink spells only last for one minute. Parahelia said,” We need a dispel magic spell.”

Artie cast mage hand and filled up the mouth with gargoyle gravel. Breena sent Rocky in; as he entered, we saw small steam clouds around the corners of the mouth, but not reaching the door. When Artie stepped in, it sprayed again to a cloud of steam around the head about one foot out and dissipated. When Breena came in there was no more steam. It was out of charges or maybe had just given up. Elron came back with more rocks but they were not needed.

Artie, Breena, Rocky and Lark entered the room, and moved around and behind the pillar. They checked out the two doors in the south wall. Artie checked for traps on the eastern door; no traps, but locked.
 

2:00 PM
Artie unlocked the east door, and the west door was unlocked and not trapped. Lark tried opening the east door, and had difficulties for a few tries; finally hitting it with his sword of door opening. Breena looked through the door and saw at the far end, there was a 10-ft-high statue of a head on the back wall with a platform in front of it. The face looked benevolent.

 

Continued in Session 34: Shrooms & Skeletons