Book Six, Chapter Seven �How to assault a temple from the outside�
����������� 27/11/2004
The castle is burning and the peasants are carrying out everything movable. So off to the Temple next door, just after Aruth puts on that new set of armour we just found. Across the drawbridge and its second building on the left. A two story building, pillars and large double doors at the front. Signs of commotion down there. Well the castle was invaded by an army of peasants, and the chief cleric did get away from us.
We proceed towards the temple past the looting peasants. I think they must know something is up. They are probably battening down the hatches inside. Zytsi chops a tree down to make a battering ram, rather than making a giant rabbit. What a shame the carpentry roll was so bad. We add our strength together with Inspirations for Daniel and Sir Martyn, and some save bonuses from Sir Martyn and Bowlhead.
Charge, Sir Martyn and Zytsi in the front rank, Aruth and Daniel in the second rank with Bowlhead behind Aruth. We charge up the steps and Aruth falls over, but the charge goes in and the Temple Doors don�t open and the log splits slightly. (Niall roll the party dice they said, suckers.) We back up and charge again, and the log explodes. (Oh, Niall doesn�t roll the party dice and it�s much, much worse. Thanks Martin.) Aruth is the only person who gets hurt, which seems reasonable in the circumstances.
Zytsi makes another battering ram and we go for it again an hour later. We charge up and smack it a mighty blow, the second attack breaks the doors abut we don�t burst in. So we get ready and go in. There is a bunch of fighters (8) in chain mail looking nervous. Four swordsmen and four with spears, in two ranks. Zytsi suggests they surrender, so they charge us.
Aruth shoots one and he goes down, and up they come. Zytsi kills one. Sir Martyn�s one falls over after fumbling his weapon. Daniel hits one for 2 stuns no parry, much to everyone�s surprise. Sir Martyn kills his.
The next round Aruth takes another one out. Daniel chops his swordsman�s head off. Go Daniel, go Daniel. And the crowd go wild. Don�t worry it wont last. Bowlhead hits the man who fell over and kills him. Zytsi kills another one, a spearman. Sir Martyn doesn�t kill the last one, who gets unlucky next round. Bowlhead may be making a mistake wielding the Staff of Naveh.
Zytsi has an attack of conscience and demands evil weapons be put away. I think he was ignored by Sir Martyn and Bowlhead, our evil weapon wielders.
On we go. There are some Clerics on a balcony, four either side. They have a plan, oh dear. We all have to save versus Channelling, and all eight of the dead fighters get up. Sir Martyn, Aruth and Zytsi fire missiles at the clerics, two die and one lies down. We back off and the Undead rush up. Daniel hits one ineffectually. They hit at us ineffectively.
They fire some spells at us and Daniel is cursed, probably. Melee continues, Aruth kills one, Bowlhead kills another one, Zytsi killed two and Sir Martyn killed one.
Next round. Spells all round at us, including a Sudden Light, none of which gets through. Daniel kills his at long last. So Zytsi kills his and Sir Martyn kills the final one, eventually.
We charge up for the balcony, and they leave the Bard the behind. He can only move at walking speed. The Curse of Dake was what Daniel failed against. Zytsi falls over, probably an Absolution. We see another cleric on our level; it was she that did for Zytsi! So Aruth shot her through the kidneys and she dies after six rounds of agony. Seems fair.
Sir Martyn shot at a cleric on the balcony. Basically we trade spells and missiles, rather infectively. Aruth kills one the next round. Sir Martyn strides across the room throwing things as he goes. Daniel opens the nearest door and finds some stairs going up. Sir Martyn runs over the one on the opposite side of the room and finds a study. Aruth kills another cleric. Daniel goes to the top of the stairs and they chuck spells at him and he goes blind, so he went down again.
Sir Martyn kills the last cleric on his side; Aruth had killed the other three with arrows. Aruth Sudden Lights the last three on the other side, only one effective left. Sir Martyn charges down the stairs, across the room and up the other stairs. Followed by Bowlhead carrying Zytsi. Aruth shot and stunned the last unstunned one. Sir Martyn butchers them.
Zytsi has Yupris shoved down his throat and comes back from Absolution. Trash the statue of Agrik and put out the Eternal Flame. Daniel practices walking around with a white stick until the blindness wear off after an hour.
Loot - 3,500d plus 2,500d in plates, candlesticks and stuff. The Absoluter has a vaguely evil amulet, associated with an evil person.
There was then a long argument about evil artefact, such as the Hand of Agrik � which has cost Sir Martyn half his power points.
If Sir Martyn cannot take off the Hand of Agrik then wants us to remove it for him. Sir Martyn swore an oath to this effect.
Sir Martyn unfortunately said that he would leave the hand on if he hadn�t lost his power point. Oh dear he gets them back, but they are obviously red ones not blue ones. But he�s all ready sworn his oath.
We wander along the road having an argument. It�s quite a long journey and quite a long argument. It continued over dinner.
Sir Martyn, feeling unhappy about it, flys on ahead on the griffon to find and kill the woman who escaped. Remember her? She�s the head of the Clerical Order who asked Sir Martyn to kill the head of the Fighting Order for her. She was not killed in the Castle or the Temple. Between here and the capital there is only the road as a route, because it�s so mountainous. That will spoil our new plan to kill the King.
The new plan to kill the King is to turn up as Sir Martyn the Champion of Larani with retainers and stay overnight. Then kill the King during the night, then go back to bed and leave after breakfast.
Sir Martyn returns having killed the woman. Some may consider this foul murder, but not some of the party; well let�s face it, most of the party don�t think it is. Oh yes he made sure he brought her kit back with him. That night he dreams and he dreams that of all the things he has ever done that is the most evil act he�s ever done. But he doesn�t tell us, and just broods and broods about it.
We spend three weeks on the journey and nothing else happens, so we arrive at Geldehiem on the on 16th of Navek. We swap roads and arrive on the southern road, from Leriel. Sir Martyn turns up on a diplomatic mission to try to allow the worship of Larani again, and talk down the Agrikans.
There is a Temple of Sarajin and one of Agrik (Crimson Dancers). The town is dominated by the castle. We go to the castle, Sir Martyn is announced as himself (his armour has been cleaned up). Interesting layout for a castle, through the walls across and then up a removable staircase into the keep. The wagon and retainers in the stable, we are kept hanging around for an hour or so. There are only three floors; first floor is huge hall with guest bedrooms and a couple of guard rooms, the King�s bedroom is on the floor above. There are two bedrooms on that floor, the King�s bedroom and the Queen�s bedroom (with a connecting door). The peasants sleep on the ground floor, which also has no external entrance.
We are given rooms on the first floor. King Alegar II sees us that afternoon. He invites us into his private downstairs throne room with a good view of the town (unfortunately it is built above the cesspit and somewhat stinks).
The gatehouse was well guarded; the King is usually accompanied by four guards. We mildly disarm ourselves, no major siege weapons and obvious missile weapons, or gratuitous weaponry. We are coldly received, but not rudely. Cool courtesies are received, and then the King and Sir Martyn withdraw to a private room for diplomacies. Sir Martyn explains he�s had a dream and things are a foot within the Temple of Agrik and what would it take for Larani to be unproscribed. The King has got a deal with the Agrikan people and his own people aren�t that interested. But we are more than welcome to stay for three days. This all takes several hours.
Feasting and carousing of an evening. More raucous then we would normally expect. Bowlhead retires early, under a hail of bread rolls (with bricks in). We study the layout as much as possible. Zytsi thinks there is a secret door near the throne. That�s the throne in the great hall, not the one above the cesspit.
Now look here is it me or is there something basically out of kilter with castle building in the north of Harn. This is the second castle we�ve been to in recent times where some pratt has an important stateroom above the cesspit. What is it with these Ivinians, are they obsessed with shit or what?
We argue about the plan, quite a lot actually. We do the King on the first night, on the 16th of Navek.
Sir Martyn, Zytsi and Aruth are the away team. Daniel is ready to deal with the two guards. Zytsi finds the secret door and finds the trap on the secret door. It�s a mechanical trap, Zytsi does minor Intuitions to see if the Disarm works, and it does. The guards don�t notice anything and in they go. There is a trap on the bedroom door, disarms the trap easily. Sir Martyn opens the door and the King is alone and is asleep in bed. Aruth casts a Silence on him. So they get a free hack at +55%, using ambush if they have any, this will wake him up unless he�s dead. Zytsi hits him with a dagger, not dead yet. Sir Martyn hits him with a sword, rolls a 65 and he has one rank of ambush so he chops his arm off. Aruth hits him with a quarterstaff. So basically he dies in silence.
He has a very valuable signet ring. Zytsi thinks about swallowing it. Sir Martyn takes off the ring, ties a bit of cloth around it and throws it out the window. There is a view of the town, down some cliffs.
They sneak back successfully and are not bloodstained.
About 8 o�clock, as we are at breakfast, the Queen finds the body. She screams and all hell breaks loose. Total uproar. We point out we have a Healer, even if he is a Jarin, but it�s too late for that. We are politely arrested and we don�t resist.
There is now a power vacuum and no obvious heir. The Agrikans may well step in. Sir Martyn uses diplomacy and we are ushered out of the city. We fail to spot the ring. The ring was not found on us and its missing so it must be political assassination.
We head south and get to Leriel, it takes 10 days. So we arrive on the 26th of Navek. Here we can get the curse removed from Daniel and Sir Martyn makes his saving throw and removes the Agrikan Hand. He really does remove it, despite even more temptation (another plus on his power points). He puts on the Laranian Silver Hand, and sends the Agrikan hand to Sulla.
So Sir Martyn wants to go to Thay to see the Primate. Zytsi wants to spend sometime in Tashal. Daniel wants to go to Midgaad to see Odin. Aruth wants to Burzyn, and Bowlhead cheers that one. Bowlhead wants to go and boast in Tashal.
Daniel identifies some of the stuff:
Agrikan 2-h sword � +25 2h sword.
Amulet off priestess who Absoluted Zytsi � Absolution 3pd � Sir Martyn takes that
Robes off murdered priestess � +20 db robes. � Bowlhead becomes the Klinger of the party
Ring off murdered priestess � 1 per 3 level multiplier, channelling � Bowlhead has it
Amulet off murdered priestess � interesting and Daniel doesn�t get anything off it, not evil but is magical � this is worn by Daniel so we can find out what it does.
Staff � +20 with additional crush critical, separate roll same severity � Bowlhead has this.
The Armour that Aruth was wearing to test Zytsi has after a quick modification and then Aruth has Zytsi�s old armour. Nice armour!
Bowlhead has the staff of Naveh taken away from him, he can whinge all he likes, tough cheese boyo.
We briefly looked at the three really evil items:
The chalice � have to use to find out what it does. We gave up at that point.
6,000eps each.
3,000d worth of jewellery is dished out each. 70,000d plus is in the party fund.
Daniel�s Amulet � 10% ep bonus which I will get at the end of the next adventure when I find out what it does. They want to give it to Bowlhead.
Robin wants a list of gear, and how much money.
Daniel has this idea. If we are so noticeable and famous then we should make the most of it as a marketing opportunity. He�s going to carve a series of collectable small wooden statues of the party. The most popular one will obviously be the Erana Sir Martyn Yanyez De Barbudo and the dress wearing nutter the rare collectors� only one.