We started with a bit of a rehash of the item distribution but ended up with what we had said last time. We did figure out how many charges the stun staves and the wand had. There was one scorpion item that was slightly more interesting than the rest of the miscellaneous loot that we gave to our Wizard. Next, we advanced to the altar area where the cultists that charged us last time had been hiding. But there was nothing of interest there so we created a marching order and headed down the stairs into the dungeon. A couple of light spells were cast in order to see. There was barely enough room on the map to get us all in before we came to an intersection. Corridors to the right and left and then forward was a large brazier on a scorpion floor mosaic with ornate double doors behind. As we debated how we’d check for traps, sneak, etc an enemy mage popped out and shot Row with a full load of magic missiles. We rolled initiative. A couple shot at him and others advanced to the corridors to find more cultists waiting there. So then the Swashbuckler Paladin charged towards the mage. After failing a WIS save to spot the trap, he triggered a trap door and after failing a DEX save, fell in. At the bottom, 30 feet down, were 2 hungry carrion crawlers. He made his acrobatics roll and landed on his feet. With a bonus action, he cast Misty Step and instantly got out of the pit. He didn’t have the range to get on the other side so he ended up in one of the corridors. It was quite a turn. Then their mage went again and cast an AOE zone that did 2d6 (or more?) of damage if you started your turn in it and caused darkness from the ash. That plus the rough terrain of the broken stairs and Andy said it was half movement.
Everyone blindly stumbled forward which took most of that turn but after an ineffective round, most everyone was out. The Fighter charged and leaped across the pit and tried to engaged the mage but a crossbow cultist was in the way. Our Wizard cast Ice Dagger on the cultist which then exploded into a small AOE which got the fully covered mage and the Fighter. The damage was minor but enough to finish off the mage. After that, it was quick clean up however the Monk was dropped again and the Swashbuckler Paladin and the Fighter were down to a handful of hit points. So we were immediately back to the “rest” debate. And since we did a short rest last time, we didn’t have the hit dice left to do anything but a long rest. Row spoke up and said he was confident only he had the knowledge to unlock the tomb and get the staff so a long rest wasn’t going to make any difference. So we would erect a Hut at the entrance so that we could see anyone going in or out (no one did) but first we couldn’t leave the carrion crawlers alone, with dreams of riches down there. After debate, the cantrip casters started blasting. Eventually one figured out what was going on and spit acid on the Rogue. But they were killed and we found nothing but junk down there. Time well spent.
Row revealed that his research showed that we would require keys in the form of gems to open the tomb. We went left and the first room had scorpion statues with ruby eyes. We all assumed a trap. The Rogue used her improved Mage Hand to remove the first gem which engulfed the room in fire. She managed to use it 3 more times to get the next 3 gems however the 3rd statue was out of reach. She attempted to do that one from as far as possible but still triggered the trap. But with a DEX save and her uncanny dodge, she only took quarter damage. One of those gems had a number on it. The next room was littered with bodies and there was a statue of the scorpion prince in an alcove. There was some cryptic phrase on the floor about worthy bodies or something. We assumed it would come to life but we started to move the bodies and soon enough it did. It was a construct and two giant snakes appeared with it. One snake was killed but it turned to mist and returned to the prince. His next turn, the snake returned. He took magic weapons to effect but almost everyone has one at this point so it wasn’t much of an issue. Andy couldn’t seem to hit and it was destroyed. It had a gem with a number on it as well as a crown that we later detected as magical. The next room had a pile of bones and debris on the near end and an overturned urn carved to look like an open mouth on the far end. The walls had evidence of wear so we assumed it would gust wind or something. Since we figured the right-hand corridor at the start would lead to the urn side of this room, we deferred it and went back.
The first room on the right was spherical with tiny holes along the walls. And a gem on a pedestal. Again the Rogue used her Mage Hand to grab the gem but the doors closed and we could hear a great wind. Eventually, the trap reset. The Wizard then cast an Unseen Servant and as it grabbed the gem, the Mage Hand replaced it with a stone of equal weight (a la Indiana Jones) and that worked. That trapped defeated, we moved into the room. When the 3rd entered, the doors slammed shut and a great wind threw the Wizard, Rogue and Swashbuckler into the tiny spikes that had emerged on the walls. And then two Sand Cloud formed and attacked. There was a bit of a panic, being split up like that but the Fighter, assisted by the Monk for advantage, managed to make a DC 20 STR check and rip the doors open on his 1st try. With the full party in play, the Sand Clouds did not last long. Next was a twisty corridor. The Rogue and the Wizard, searching for traps, snuck in and triggered an earthquake. Those few in the room made their saves and stayed up. Then a bunch of giant scorpions emerged from the cracks and attacked. The Rogue was hit and the 6d6 poison damage knocked her out. But then she successfully argued that her uncanny dodge should have applied, making the stinger a glancing blow, and wasn’t out. But she disengaged and got out of there. The Wizard with the highest initiative was Row so he let loose with a Fireball and toasted them all. The last two standing were wiped out by the Fighter and the Sorlock. Another gem was found.
We then came to the urn room again. We debated and decided we could reach the center room without having to mess with yet another trapped but discovered that the ornate doors in the first room were not actually doors. More trickery. So back to the urn. The Wizard used the Unseen Servant, hoping to redirect the urn. With a mighty STR check of 20, it shifted it enough to triggered a flood of slimy water down the corridor. So we avoided that but in addition, an undead slime thing came out and emerged from the bones on the other end. It was so horrible, it caused fear in a 60 radius for anyone who was aware of it. Everybody, including Row, missed their save. So we had disadvantage to hit and couldn’t get closer to it. That was a bit of a pain but its AC was low so people could still hit it. It just left some out of the action for a round or two if they weren’t in hand to hand already. Andy misread that we got a new save at the end of our turn but it was only around a couple of rounds regardless. Just before it dropped, the other one showed up but we saved much better this time. Andy couldn’t seem to hit and it was quickly over. We got one more gem which, based on the numbers, means that we’ve got 4 out of 5?
Based on the map we could see, that leaves one room in the center. We did not turn that corner however, calling it a night. That crown was a Periapt of Wound Closure. Once attuned, the wearer automatically stabilizes on his turn if he’s unconscious. And rolls 2 dice for the price of 1 when doing the selfheal thing during a short rest. It would be of use to most anybody however since the Monk has likely gone out more than everybody else combined, he was the logical choice.
