Sleet's GreyHawk Campaign: Return to the Flying Tower

18th of Reaping, High Summer

[DM: back at the gaming table for the group was splendid after some remote/online sessions]

We rejoin the Fellowship as they look down on a small village enclosed by a wooden palisade about 15' high of unfinished point logs, there appears to be one gate with some buildings inside the walls as well as a small wooden tower.

The party note that the evening wildlife which had been absent along the long road and then in Axegard has returned and is somewhat refreshing to all. crickets, birds, frogs and more.. the smell of lush forest a pleasant change from the demonic sewers in and city grounds of Axegard.

One building has what appears to be a stone foundation while the rest are all wood. There is what appears to be one building has burned down. Smoke sill rising slowly up in a long trail wisp into the clear night sky.

1. The RustyKnight Inn

2. Ancient Cheeses of Blackmoor - Cheese shop and residence

3. Ralex's General Mercantile

4. McKran's Smithy

5. Burned out building

The party still up on a hill nearby, head down on to the road heading up to the village, the evening sky still somewhat lit by the setting sun even at 9 bells. The gate is closed as the adventurers move up. A muffled high-pitched voice answers after Doc knocks on the gate.

A high pitched but gruff voice after some shuffling, "Who's there?"

Doc replies, "Travelers, looking for a flying tower."

The voice sound somewhat strange, and the party becomes suspicious. Gothi and Hester sense something is off. Then some giggling from a few points on the other side of the gate.

Gothi - using her boots of spider climbing - stealthily and she peers over and sees three children [girl probably 14 and a boy and girl under 10]. Gothi draws her bow and a flaming arrow is pulled back, The two younger children scream and run away, while the older girl is shuffling back on her hands and feet.

The party tries to appease the girl, but she jumps up and runs. "My Da is at home!"

The party look around and check out the burnt down building. Investigating they confirm it happened recently. Tibaltuous confirms someone tried to put the fire out as he finds water, A small crossbow bolt - finely made - as well as a small chest under the remnants of a bed. A charred small crossbow bolt is found, but no markings or identifications found on it,

[DM: The party fixates on how the cheese is created - as no cows, farmlands, or ranches seen, milking dragon, unicorns being milked in basements, centipedes being milked.. 😆]

The party hear some laughter and voices from the larger building [#1]. Gothi and Doc go to investigate while Tibaltuous and Graxxuzazz continue to investigate into the cheese mystery.

Gothi and Doc enter the Rusty Knight inn and see some farmers, as well what appear to be 3 travelers, 2 serving girls, as well as a portly older man with large mutton shop sideburns behind the bar. Beside the hearth in the main room is a rusty suit of full plate armour worn by knights in jousts. Over the hearth is a massive two-handed sword. No rust nor scratch on the fine blade.

Gothi and Doc have a drink and order some food, Ol' Verris is the barkeep and owner, with his 2 daughters serving - Sarah and Vera. Sarah a cute girl in her late 20's is tall with long black hair in a pony tail, the intelligent one. The beautiful Vera is the blonde and bubbly always happy now 19.

Interacting with the 3 travelers, 1 appearing to be a hobbit and the other two are human females.

Meanwhile Graxxuzazz and Tibaltuous look at the other buildings trying to figure out where the cheese is being made or creatures being held to milk it are. The bard makes a joke about spreading "the good word of IUZ" and he gets an intense pain in the back of his head. The two realize that saying those words about Iuz, the hated enemy of Orcus - was not a good idea..

Doc asks about the flying tower and one of the serving girls drops a tray of dishes with a crash. The lady names Doc and Gothi so it appears the Fellowship are well known. Gothi and Doc think they three are bounty hunters but it appears not.

Meanwhile, Tibaltuous and Graxxuzazz telepathically advise Gothi and Doc they will be down the road a 1/2 mile, and start reading their book again together.

One of the ladies - seems like the leader, a tall lady in her 30s with brown hair, long in a pony tail, blue eyes and wearing tan leather armour. A dagger at her belt - asks Doc if a reward if the tower is found. After a near combat moment the two leave. Telepathically talking that they need to figure who these folks are. They must know about the tower..

Gothi offers 77 gold, where Doc advises can pay 5000 gold if they find the location. This perks the three up a little, but other than a smirk from the hobbit, nothing more. Doc and Gothi get into some final words with the three and the the two adventurers can feel there is something wrong.

They meet up with the sorcerer and the bard who are deep in a trance reading the massive tome ofOrcus' origin once again together.

While Doc and Gothi are moving down the road, the two and the bear hear a "Psst. hey Mister!"

At first they don't see anything but then see the small boy from the gate.

After some cajoling and offering 77 gold reward - the small 8 year old boy has never held a gold piece!

The boy tells them of that they look like black-skinned elves.

Doc and Gothi in unison: "Drow".

"Been a week in the town, they burnt down the building." He mumbles while looking at the gold, "Yea they carry tiny crossbows, like in one hand." Doc smiles and nods fingering the charred bot.

It appears they took some of the townsfolk away. At this the boy looks very sad, seems he has lost one of his family perhaps. Up in the mountains. The boy points to the Northeast.

The power source for the tower.. people.

Doc tells the boy to go hide, gives the boys some food and water. "Get your sister and hide up there for a day or two."

The boy looks sad at thinking of his family and friends being taken. "I'm a never comin' back.. with that much gold 77.. I can't count that high but I'll live like a king!"

Doc and Gothi come up upon Tibaltuous and Graxxuzazz. Both are in the dark, hunched over the familiar tome once again. Turning pages together.

Gothi rides up and jumps down and slaps both of them. The Portly athletic lizardfolk continues reading but the 1/2 elf bard is pulled out of his trance-like reading.

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[DM ADVISORY: the next paragraphs may have some disturbing information to some feel free to skip]

Tibaltuous and Graxxuzazz are standing on a familiar desolate and featureless plan of black sands, nearby stands what appears to be a younger Orcus. In front of the two is a human girl spread-eagled on

a wooden X. and Orcus looks down at the two, rumbles, "Kill her".

At this moment, Tibaltuous is ripped away from the scene and awakes in the dark dizzy and nearly vomiting.

Graxxuzazz looks down and his clawed hands and realizes that he is not a lizardfolk but some type of barbed demonic humanoid, six arms, carrying multiple weapons in hand. Graxxuzazz/Demon cuts in to the girl, and he is pulled back to the realm. The two, now it seems to be not in sync they will need to re-read the chapter.

**************

The party discuss and decide the three in the inn are probably drow who were purported to be at or in control of their flying Tower!

[DM: some time was spent trying to figure out why Gothi and Doc had MAJOR issues with Drow. 😊]

Mission Impossible [DM: queue theme music]

The party returns planning to do a night raid to take out the three bounty-hunters/drow/evil folk - 2 women and hobbit.

After some great stealth and planning, Gothi gets on the roof and using her X-Ray vision. She scans the rooms and then finds the skeletal like forms of what looks like 2 slender women and the hobbit.

Tibaltuous starts his mission to move in, with the telepathic link with Gothi providing perfect details on where to go. The room was right next to Ol'Verris' room.

Right before Tibaltuous, Doc and team crashed in, the party recalled that Ol'Verris had two daughters.. no three daughters! One being smaller. [met at the gate]

Gothi realized that the three were not the three potential Drow but the daughters of the innkeeper!

The mission was pulled back, the team moving out. As it appears the three travelers were NOT in the inn. Probably at the tower or on the way to it, based on the details from the boy the party had been given.

The Fellowship decided it was time to find their tower!

Moving as fast as they can, Gothi riding her bear - Morsel - and Graxxuzazz polymorphs into a dire wolf. They all headed up into the mountains and found a bridge crossing a dry riverbed. The party saw some light ahead. Then a small camp with tents. but all that was minor, there was the RedWater Fellowship's TOWER.

The tower looks to be crashed/landed on the edge of a deep lake. The lake formerly fed the Siren river. It has nearly dried up it appears, now the lake depths can nearly be seen hundreds of feet below the tower precariously crashed into the wall of the mountain at a slight angle. A rope bridge along the steep and shear wall goes from the camp to a balcony - looks to be the 3rd floor].

As the party move up, a female drow appears smiling, wearing a wide brimmed hat. She was the one talking to Doc and Gothi in the Rusty Knight Inn. Her skin in areas is white and black, as if some disease or other gave it a patch work white and black.

Some discussion and negotiations to work together or ally, but in the end, these break down.

Gothi fires two arrows, but she quickly dodges and then disappears from sight. Between Morsel's and Graxx's sense of smell they know she is fairly close but moving away..

COMBAT - next session.