We got off to a late start due to lack of players. We even played a couple virtual board games until Paul called in and pushed us up to 4. We crossed the drawbridge to the first gate. There was no cover to be had in the inner courtyard so we debated. There were plenty of arrow slits but no sign of people. Loki cast Pace Without Trace which includes a “shroud of darkness” which we hoped would help. We crossed and came to the front door. At this point Paul started asking questions. Did we want to scout around the whole castle perimeter? Is this an intelligence gathering opportunity or a practice fight or what? Ultimately, we decided not to back track and go forward. The bigger question was how “real” was this encounter. If we found stuff, do we keep it? If we use stuff, like consumable magic items, do we lose it? Brian was unhelpful and vague, as expected. We pressed on and went in.
The castle was for the most part empty. Very much like the abandoned mansions and keeps we’ve cleared out before. Dusty and decrepit. We just started wandering about with Baron Q added to the mix. We heard music coming from the dining room but since we had been there before, we deferred it. We saw various statues and gargoyles which didn’t animate. (I had to drop off about here so this is my best reconstruction.) They found an abandoned chapel to the Morning Lord. This castle was once home to a noble family, before Stradanya took over the land. To their surprise, the chapel was still “holy”. They found a dead adventurer who seemed to have been electrocuted from touching a morning lord statue. Ezra said it was good so he must have been bad. He had a magic mace which Baron Q took. Somewhere in here, they were attacked by some zombies. They were dispatched without much issue but it made some noise.
Somehow, they went up a level from there (balcony?) and ended up in a hallway. They triggered a trap and Stradanya appeared. However, it was just a cheesy hunted house mannequin. They also found a secret door that led to an elevator going up and down. They spent an hour on this. Evidently there were no controls inside it but could control it from the outside. They sent it up and it made a lot of noise. As if it hadn’t been used in a long time. They didn’t want to risk it and didn’t want to change levels until this area was searched. So, reluctantly, they left it behind. The next room of interest, after a couple of unanimated skeletons were hacked to bits by Kharn, had the castle’s accountant. He was very old and chained to his desk. Surrounded by scrolls and papers. (I came back at this point.) Baron Q did his detect magic and we asked him some questions. He did say that there was no money in his chests. There was a false treasure room up but that the good stuff was down. Loki tried to get the location of Stradanya’s bed room or of her minions but he didn’t know. He was unaware of the elevator but had heard the noise. Ambrus tried to unlock his chains but the manacle was bolted on. We left him.
From there we went down into the first main hall via another secret stairway. (On a side note, because we were using line of sight instead of fog of war, it was very hard to keep track of where we had been and how it all pieced together.) As we debated whether to go into the dining room, BQ wandered about with his detect magic on. He passed through the gargoyle room and this time they animated. We’re not sure what was different. They attacked but they were dispatched in a couple of rounds. We were simply too high of level for them. At this point, it was approaching 1AM so we stopped. We’ve scouted a tiny portion of the castle and found next to nothing of interest. I guess the hope is to find something important, like a minion or a glowing red gem, and then map the fastest way there? Anyhow, there’s still a ton of exploring to go. And where is everybody? Last time we were here, wasn’t it full of servants?
Jon’s game next week. Without Fantasy Grounds.
