Session 36: Spiders & Ants

The adventurers fight giant bugs and continue their explorations of the Demon’s Gullet.

This write up is from Kay's notes from our August 8, 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 shot.

Continued from: Pits and Clerics

Date: May 23, 3517

Location: Level 2, Yaza’s Bedroom

11:30 AM 
The skull-headed mace looked identical to the one the goblin priestess had in Castle Calaelen, who was trying to raise a zombie when we fought her. That one damaged people, but not elves, so it didn’t affect Elron when he picked it up. We’ll let him carry it.  We also rolled up the other items in robes from the locker (helmet, mace, skull with gems for eyes).

Blaze suggested searching for a secret door in the room with the wall writings; it’s adjacent to a blank space on our map, large enough to be a hidden room. Elron checked the west wall and found nothing. Lark thought it was 10 feet of solid rock.

Moving out of the room to the main hallway, the group went east and south. The hallway turned east again and there were two doors on the south side of the hall. Artie checked the first one, no traps, and could not hear any sounds inside. The door was locked. Artie picked the lock, but it was stuck. Blaze pushed hard and opened the door.

The room beyond was empty, with another door on the west wall. Lark checked the second door farther to the east in the main hall, it was locked. Lark moved farther down the main hallway and saw a passageway going south.

Artie checked the interior door; it wasn’t locked, just stuck. Blaze opened it onto an empty room with mold in the northwest corner. There’s some dampness in here, and another door on the west wall. Artie checked that door on the west wall; no traps. Moisture has rotted the door; it’s not locked but corroded badly. Blaze opened the door with brute strength; inside she saw spider webs filling the room, with water dripping from the ceiling. Blaze cast flaming sphere to clear the room of the webs, but the webs wouldn’t burn in the wetness, just scorch a little. The smell was bad.

Back in the hallway, Lark heard something coming toward him from the east. Blaze ended the flaming sphere and tried to close the door, but something was coming through it; a giant spider pushing its way out. Breena came in with a crossbow bolt, but it missed, and stuck in the webbing. Parahelia threw her weight on the door to slam it shut; the door closed, and a spider leg was left on this side, twitching on the floor. Parahelia continued holding the door closed.

Lark yelled that he could hear something coming down the corridor from the east. Artie and Blaze ran out into the hallway. Parahelia, holding the door against a giant spider, said “we can’t fight a two-front war.” The spider forced the door open, knocking Parahelia aside. Then there were two giant spiders coming out. Breena cast lightning lure on one spider, bringing it to her, shocking and burning it in the process.

Back in the hallway, Lark heard the clicking sound of many feet on the floor, and saw 3 giant ants approaching. When they got close, one ant snapped at Rocky, dismissing the familiar.

Artie yelled at people to get into the room, so we can close the door from the ants. Elron moved into the empty room. Sinis moved back and cast acid splash through the open door onto the spider, damaging it further. Lark followed Elron in. Blaze cast flaming sphere on the first ant and hit it, then left the sphere in the hallway as an obstacle, ducking back inside, and closed the door.

Breena cast dragon breath on herself and used it on the injured spider, killing it. Parahelia saw the second spider coming up and slammed the door on it; then pulled out a flask of oil.

The giant spider pushed on the door against Parahelia who tried to keep the door closed. The door was too damaged to latch, so it was strength vs. strength with Parahelia and the spider.

Blaze opened the door to the hallway briefly, to check on the ants.  They were nowhere to be seen. The giant ants probably didn’t like the flaming sphere and must have left the area.

 

Elron joined Parahelia in keeping the door closed. Lark listened at the door to the hallway and heard the popping and crackling of the flaming sphere, but nothing else. Parahelia and Elron continued holding the door closed. Artie locked the hallway door and watched.

Parahelia tried holding the door closed, but the spider forced the door open again.

Elron cast produce flame, burning the giant spider. Sinis cast acid splash on it for more damage. Lark moved forward raising his sword. Breena shot a crossbow bolt which glanced off the spider and stuck in the webs again. Parahelia dropped her shield and, using her two-handed longsword, hit it, then picked up her shield. Artie shot his bow at the spider but missed. Blaze hit it with her acid splash for more damage. The giant spider disengaged and ran away, trailing smoke. Elron closed the door again.  

Lark went to the hallway door, listened, but heard no sound; peeked out and saw nothing. The flaming sphere disappeared when Blaze used her acid splash spell. Breena moved into the other room. Parahelia and Artie discussed a plan of attack between the spiders and ants. They figured the ants were elsewhere now and we just had to deal with the giant spider.

Elron opened the door to the spider room and stepped in. Sinis moved closer to the door and held his action. Lark closed and relocked the hallway door. Breena waited where she was for targets to appear. Parahelia stepped into the room and saw the spider on the ceiling in the NW corner. The webs slowed people down moving through the room; she readied her sword.

Blaze stepped through and saw two large cocoons in the room, in the NE and NW corners; one was under the spider. The spider shrank back. Artie thought the cocoons might contain live victims we could rescue; others thought it was the spider’s egg sacs. Sinis stepped through and cast acid splash; the spider, already sad-looking, fell to the floor, dead.

Now that it’s dead and on the floor, we noticed another door on the west wall near the spider. Artie locked the east door of the middle room, so there were two locked doors between us and the giant ants. Lark cleared the webs in the room, cutting a path to the west door for people. Blaze and Brena burned the cocoons, killing thousands of tiny spider egg sacs before they could hatch.

We searched the room; no loot. The room had dripping water, mold, and was chilly. The western door was quiet; it’s damaged with wet like the other door, with a badly corroded lock.

1 PM
We could take a long rest here. But eight hours here doesn’t seem worth it, when we could go back to the castle. But there are injured members who could use healing and a rest.

Continued in Session 37 - Skeletons & Ants