The Uderhardt Clanhold: Part 2

Session 97

Characters: Terus, Balin, Julian, Anthony, Grim, Davvin.

NPCs: Slaughterstone Eviscerator, The Great Uderhardt Anaxim, Iron Golem.

11 Alturiak 1374 - 13 Alturiak 1374

6130 XP

With the stone automaton guardians destroyed, the party rested and then began to search through the rubble for signs of the next passageway out. Many of the blue antimagic runes which lit the large room were now disjoined. They found 3 adjacent smaller rooms, each of which contained a complicated mechanical console and a perfectly crafted stone platform. In exploring the function of one room's controls Julian triggered a deadly trap of blades which had been recessed in the fine dwarven stone walls. With no room for error, the party discovered that these three mechanisms were highly accurate scales which required 1 exactly weighted item to be placed on each. Anthony Manton again called upon his background of weaponsmithing to finely alter 3 undamaged gears from the destroyed automatons. Meanwhile, Grim instructed Julian how to re-calibrate the mechanisms to their new expected weights. After a number of close-calls the party had locked the mechanisms in their proper positions and the entire floor began to shift around them.

The entire dungeon seemed to have been mechanically animated as the hallway they had formerly rested in was now a stone elevator shaft moving down. The adventurers quickly entered the elevator but as it descended the ancient gears above could hold no longer. The shaft began to slowly collapse above them as stone and metal fell upon the party. Just before all seemed to have been lost the archway of the bottom floor appeared and the stone slab crashed against the ground. Standing on a metal platform among walls of whirring blades was a fearsome construct of the Uderharts, the Slaughterstone Eviscerator. Anthony and Terus charged across a now weakened stone bridge and joined battle with the foe. Julian, Balin, and Davvin narrowly made it across the collapsing stone bridge and began to help Anthony and Terus. After a bloody battle in the glowing blue room the eviscerator was destroyed and the party rested.

Julian and Terus soon had discovered that the eviscerator's adamantine blades were in fact keys in a hidden platform underneath the floor. Manipulating the blades the two thieves depressed the correct mechanisms and opened another doorway. Julian and Terus casually entered the new stone hallway and became surrounded by an incredible mechanical trap of blades spikes and poison. Both survived through their great agility and found themselves at the most complicated door lock they had ever seen, the lock was in fact the door itself. Julian concentrated and finally disabled the mechanical door. The rest of the party followed cautiously down a second hallway and at the end was a room lit not by blue antimagic runes, but magical torches! In the center however, was the single greatest construct ever to had been created by the ancient Uderhardts, the Anaxim. It was a man sized warrior of blades and gears so impressive that the dwarven pantheon had given it one of its highest blessings.

A terrible battle ensued, Terus was nearly cut in half by the prodigious Anaxim. The rest of the party scrambled to enter the magical area, however the Anaxim had summoned a Iron Golem which blocked the entranceway into the magical room. Julian ran straight into the Iron construct and was nearly killed had it not been for Anthony Manton and Davvin's heroics. Balin morphed into many amazing creatures of magic while Grim blasted the Anaxim with his most powerful force spells. Still, it seemed all was lost, but then in the party's darkest moment, Davvin called upon the death lord Kelemvor again and was answered. A blast of magical energy healed the party as Davvin's holy prayers began to collect in the form of a huge warrior of Kelemvor. With the tides of battle turned the party was able to finally destroy the Anaxim and they now catch their breath in the final room of the Uderhardt clanhold.

The Uderhardt Clanhold: Part 1

Session 96

Characters: Julian, Balin, Randal, Anthony, Grim, Samael.

NPCs: 16 Stone Automatons.

10 Alturiak 1374 - 11 Alturiak 1374

4380 XP

Back again in the great mining cavern, the party began to make its way toward the Uderhardt Clan guildhall. They went around to the side of the castle structure to find a massive entrance with large rails leading through it. Entering the party found many decayed corpses of dwarves hung on chains in the rafters and old signs of orcs as well. They followed the old rails through the large Uderhardt machine shops and eventually discovered a switching hub for many of the guildhall's rail cars. Julian began to tinker with the gears and levers to release a rail car for he and Balin to travel down the runnels in. Accidentally, he unlocked a large rail car which proceeded to gain momentum and fall down a deep shaft with a crash. Somewhat later he managed to unlock another and Balin and Julian rode down the twisting tunnel at an increasing speed.

The rest of the party was nearly crushed by the speeding cart and Grim was hit in the leg. Soon the cart gained a dangerous amount of momentum and Julian and Balin bailed out just in time. The party followed the now gaping opening downward and passed through many levels of the amazing ruins of the Uderhardt castle. Finally, they had reached its deepest point, a small platform surrounded by the most complex machine they had ever seen. Many levers, cranks, gears, buttons and chains stood in all forms of decay. The party began to examine and search for clues and discovered that it was a complex mathematical series. Grim and Julian led the party in figuring out the mechanisms and finally unlocked the platform. The party descended into the great Uderhardt Clanhold.

The first challenge the party faced was a complicated maze of moving blocks and gears. Many dwarven runes illuminated the area in a blue glow of antimagic. One by one they balanced, jumped and climbed through the deadly mechanism avoiding danger at every turn. Samael made it through without breaking as much as a sweat, while Randal also eased his way through. Anthony, Grim, and Balin however became caught in some of the increasingly bloody gears and stones. Julian finally, had the most difficult time and ran with a mad dash through the gears due to his new "golden armor."

Safely on the next ledge the party rested for 8 hours. Meanwhile, Julian, Samael, and Grim set to disabling a number of the antimagic runes in the rooms so that they could cast healing and protective magic upon themselves. Amazingly, Julian was able to temporarily disable the antimagic runes and the party healed themselves fully. Next they opened a great mechanical stone door and began to carefully search through a large square room. There were 16 large indents in the floor which were illuminated by more of the blue antimagic glowing runes. Balin stepped in one and was nearly crushed by falling stone pillars, Randal had saved him. These were not merely stone pillars however. In seconds they began to animate into great Stone Automatons and attacked. The party suffered terrible wounds from the seemingly invincible guardians. They fought back into the small room they had rested in and Grim was able to cast a Mordenkainen's Disjunction to permanently destroy a number of the antimagic runes. Now capable of using their practiced magic against the Automatons the party evened the sides and reduced the stone guardians to rubble. The now stand in a large square room filled with the stone rubble and mechanical remnants of the automation guardians.

The Harador Clanhold

Session 95

Characters: Cael, Julian, Randal, Grim, Balin, Anthony.

NPCs: Ragewind of dwarven warriors, 4 Elder Fire Elementals, Hizagkurr Golem, Grimir the priest of Gorm.

9 Alturiak 1374 - 10 Alturiak 1374

7950 XP

Stepping through the fiery hearth the party appeared in a small room with a small pedestal in each of its 4 corners. Covering the floor was a great pile of ancient weapons, above each pedestal Julian read in dwarven "choose only one." They shifted through the pile carefully and discovered thousands of dwarven names inscribed on the floor below. Eventually, Julian had found 4 identical hizagkurr axes and placs them on each pedestal. Immediately, a fearsome Ragewind collected itself from the piles of weapons and ravaged the party with blades. The adventurers returned their attacks bravely and finally had destroyed the undead guardian. After more searching Julian found a lone throwing axe with the name "Harador" simply incribed upon it. Using the old axe the party unlocked the teleportation runes and were gone.

The appeared in an inferno of flame and heat upon a slender platform of solid steel. Wood, leather, and cloth burned to ashes instantly as the party reeled from the thermal shock. Julian was able to betow a protective spell upon the party just as 4 huge Fire Elementals shaped as dwarven warriors formed around the party. Balin provided additional proctection from the epic heat as Grim engaged the fiery warriors with incredible blasts of magical acid and force. The Elementals attacks continued to batter and burn the party but the power of Grim's spells overwhelmed them. After the battle the party moved across the anvil shaped platform and discovered a portal door made of jumbled weaponsmithing icons. Anthony Manton called upon his old smithing background in Cormyr and was able to arrange them in the proper sequence.

The party moved onward and found themselves in the midst of a great gauntlet of hammers pounding away at every surface of the cramped tunnel. With endurance and dexterity they carefully made their way through the hammers. They teleported through the last of the portals, and appeared in in the final room of the Harador clanhold. Standing on a terraced stone platform in the room's center was the epic sentinel of the Harador clan, the Hizagkurr Golem. Without hesitation the party charged forward. Cael unleashed a massive assault of arcane energy against the Golem as it returned equally powerful blows. However, a second blast from Cael's weapon cut the Hizagkurr guardian into pieces. Victorious, the adventurers began to search for the treasure hold. Julian discovered and was able to unlock a puzzle, piece by piece the wall was moved away revealing the most incredible glittering treasure they had ever set eyes on.

In near extasy, Julian leapt into the shining pile of precious metals and became fastly stuck. The last trap of the ancient Harador clan had been sprung. For the outer laver had been covered in sovereign glue, and Julian was now covered permanatly in a thick layer of treasure! The rest of the party pulled him out and then discovered 4 of the nine famed anvils of Gildabarr. Immediately upon seeing them the party acted according to their Quest and teleported to the monastary of Gorm. Pouring rain soaked the party as they met with the still cautious dwarven defenders. They told Grimir all of the hazards they encountered and handed over 4 of the 9 anvils in perfect condition. Grateful and honored Grimir led the party into a humble feast with the other adventurers and insisted they rest with the dwarves for a single night more. The following morning they returned under Grim's Teleportation spell to the industrial cavern of Gildabarr.

A Not-So-Dwarven Council

Session 94

Characters: Terus, Julian, Anthony, Cael, Randal, Grim, Balin.

NPCs: Grimir the Priest of Gorm Gulthyn.

7 Alturiak 1374 - 9 Alturiak 1374

2137 XP

After the spirit of Gorm's sentinel disappeared, the party discussed and decided it was necessary to find one of the deity's church leaders and ask forgiveness for the destruction of the temple. Grim teleported the party safely into the interior grounds of a Gorm Gulthyn monastery in the northern Starspire mountains. A group of confused dwarven guards suited in scale mail quickly surrounded the party. After much awkward introductions, the party was taken into the personal office of the head priest Grimir. There in the small office, Julian led the party in a deep confession of their actions in the lost Gildabarr. Afterward, Grimir instructed the party to stay in a holding barracks for one night while he conferred with the other priests. The next afternoon the party was invited to a council with Grimir who told them that atonement could be achieved if they appeased Gorm with a greater act of good than the evil they had committed. They were given a Quest to return the 9 great anvils which the dwarves of Gildabarr used for their magical creations to the church of Gorm. The party stayed for the remainder of the day while Grim researched a critical spell required for their journey.

The morning of the 9th, the party teleported back to the bottom great hall of the Harador clan's keep. They carefully searched for any signs of secret entrances or ideas as to where the clanhold could be accessed. Randal discovered magical fire runes inscribed in the large hearth. Cael, Terus, and Grim found secret trapped doors which led to the mummified remains of hundreds of dwarves. Balin read many of the stone carvings written of the columns depicting rituals and ceremonies. Anthony searched the stone table and thrones where it was learned that an axe, hammer, pick, and mace would be needed to active some magical runescript. The party also discovered an old secret entrance to a well, deep at the bottom Balin found the remains of murdered dwarves... not of the Harador clan.

After many hours of searching and excavations, the party had formulated a plan. To re-enact the old Harador traditions and activate the runes. Balin turned into a dwarf while Julian and Grim tricked the magical ceremony, Anthony was polymorphed into a dwarf by Balin. After a great feast, and a long argument it was settled that Julian was a dunce! The ceremony ended in a glow of magical runes, the party stepped forth into the bright flame filled hearth, and was gone.

Frost and Faith

Session 93

Characters: Terus, Julian, Anthony, Cael, Randal, Grim, Balin, Davvin.

NPCs: Ras-Dal-Var Whisperstone, Elder Lava Elemental, Sentinel of Gorm Gulthyn.

6 Alturiak 1374 - 7 Alturiak 1374

2850 XP

The party rested with their strange visitor on the outskirts of their camp. In the morning Davvin casted a Find the Path spell upon Julian who commanded that they move toward the Harador Clan Greathold. After a couple hours of walking through the barren stone caverns in the upper city, the party reached a smaller staircase going down, some distance from the main staircase. They followed the crumbling stone stairs down until at the very bottom they found themselves in the presence of an even more massive cavern. The lower ceiling of this cave stretched toward many tunnels and mining entrances. Crumbled stone structures dotted the landscape, and in the center was a great volcanic opening where the old dwarven forges had been built against. The every surface seemed to be covered in a sharp, grey crystal formations which Terus suggested contained fragments of Hizagkurr ore and dust.

They followed the spell's path for another hour through this massive cavern until they reached a river which flowed around the base of the overspilled volcano. The party carefully crossed and were now within a stone's throw from the Harador Guildhall. Whisperstone felt something unusual in the volcanic stone however and quickly moved away. The blackened stone heated red as an ancient Lava Elemental bursted from the rock and sent flaming material against the party. Cael shielded himself in a Piercing Cold sheath and flew toward the gargantuan beast. The two clashed in massive blasts of fire and ice, and soon the Lava Elemental cooled to black stone and was destroyed in an icy blow from Cael's mage blade.

With the terrible Lava beast gone, party spoke longer with Whisperstone about the Harador Clan and then entered through the long destroyed ruins of their Guild Hall. Along the way they picked up many hints and clues about this Clan's mysterious history. Slowly and cautiously the party descended into the lowest room of the Guildhall. A large council room with the long rotted remains of thousands of dwarven people. The party cleared a place in the center and began to rest. In the middle of their rest, Anthony Manton's watch was disturbed as the most unlikely of foes appeared with a blast of energy, and sound. The sentinel of Gorm Gulthyn demanded retribution for the destruction of Gildabarr's ancient holy temple. Anthony tried to reason with the spirit, but it immediately charged at Cael, draining him to death. The party already stirring returned attacks against the sentinel but soon Randal was drained of all his life. Davvin had seen enough, and summoned the power of Kelemvor to once again destroy this dwarven spirit. He charged forward, and struck it in a great faithful blast, dissipating the sentinel into thin air. Its material tie to Gildabarr however, continued to remain.

When Holy Stones Fall

Session 92

Characters: Terus, Julian, Cael, Anthony, Grim, Davvin, Balin.

NPCs: Peter the elder Priest of Tyr, Apthorus the Priest of Mystra, Ras-Dal-Va Whisperstone the Gnomish Bard.

5 Aulturiak 1374 - 6 Alturiak 1374

1400 XP

After the ghostly sentinel was slain the party re-grouped and were able to free Anthony Manton from Davvin's sarcophagus spell. The furious Anthony and Grim argued against the others that they had just committed an unjust atrocity. After much shouting Cael and Julian led the rest into the darknened temple to explore it further. Cael was able to decipher an intricate carving upon the stone alter depicting great dwarven defenders and battles. Meanwhile, Julian felt a curious architectural characteristic of the walls, floors, and ceilings but could not determine its purpose. The party moved down to find an empty lower level built with an epically hard understone material. Julian found a secret door in the center and immediately four thrown levers began to pull the building apart from every angle. Julian feverishly piled the temple's treasure into his bag while Davvin, Cael and Balin attempted to throw the levers back. It was too late however, and the four teleported out safely under Davvin's will. Grim attempted to teleport Anthony and himself away but was faltered by the falling stone and Anthony was crushed to death.

Outside the ruined temple the party viewed the tortured corpse of Anthony Manton. He was Cocconed by Balin and then Cael, Balin, and Terus teleported to Zassaspur to raise the pius Tyrant. The three were gladly allowed entrance to the city and many acolytes happily greeted them as they approached the great triad Fortress. During a personal counsel with an old priest named Peter Cael told a small lie and omitted much of the truths involving Anthony's death. The wrinkled disciplinarian was harsh with Cael who left immediately. He then sought the counsel of Apthorus, head priest of the Mystra chapel. After much divining, Apthorus determined that if he were to case the Raise, that the paladin would not return. Frustrated and sickened, Cael returned to the Fortress of the Faithful where Anthony was immediately raised by three triad priests. Cael asked forgiveness for his actions with Peter in a long personal counsel.

The three returned to the main city of Gildabarr and met again with the party. During that night on Anthony's watch a curious gnome covered in stone dust and emerald trinkets named Whisperstone approached the camp. He had spent his whole life among the ruins of Gildabarr and told the party of Illithid slayers and gem bearers many of the ancient city's secrets. They had now rested and are ready to continue on toward the deepest ruins of Gildabarr.