Salkan Soiree: Ep20: Below the Sanctum

 Run Date: December 27, 2023

PCs
Lucy: Lv1 Thief
Helvezia: Lv1 Paladin
Thea: Lv3 Barbarian
Zile: Lv1 Ruinguard

Hench
Vasher: Lv0
Matt: Lv0
Leena: Lv1 Priestess

Below the Sanctum

Slacking on writing so I don’t quite remember the opening situation, but the party decided to return to Ogavaka’s Sanctum and continue exploring it in the hopes of finding more treasure.

On the march to the Sanctum, the group came across a trade caravan. The merchants were quite friendly, and very open about having gotten a great deal on a rare and valuable weapon. The party inquired as to what it was and learned that the leader had won a hefty bet; earning a Flamebrand Sword. It was far too rich for the player’s blood, but everyone (excepting the Paladin) weighed the risk of stealing it. After a back and forth discussion, they settled for hoping the caravan would be killed by something else and they’d be able to pick the remains on their way home.

The group arrived at the Sanctum with a bit of time left in the evening and decided to hop on down into the dungeon. They went through the blade and bleed process per usual, then descended down. What they discovered was a smattering of trashed bones and refuse piled near the old statue that sat at the center of the main landing. The players were cautious for an ambush, but one never came. After spending some time considering their options, then struck out down the northern hallway.

The party came to a door and listened, only to hear the chewing and snapping of bones and muttered conversation. They then set their battle lines and kicked open the door. The creatures beyond tried, and failed, to defend themselves as Thea and Helvezia cut them down; two reptilian creatures with baboon-like faces and crystalline scales standing guard at a door. I’ve mentioned before that I like to use the 1e AD&D DMG to lay out dungeon maps/frameworks. This room and the connected halls made for an interesting setup.

After the strange creatures were dispatched, Lucy checked the door. Locked. She gave picking it a couple tries (as 2e allows retries as Methodical and at the cost of time), and upon failing, Thea or Helvezia attempted to kick it down. They failed. Before the party could attempt another charge, they heard battle cries from the edge of their light: a squad of crystal-eyed, desiccated berserkers rushed at them.

Helvezia and Thea charged to the light’s edge to cut down the berserkers, and made quick work of the fragile things. However, the locked door suddenly opened and the rest of the party was rushed by bulky humanoid crystal lizards; their leader wielding a beautiful shield. Behind the lizards were more of the baboon-faced reptiles set up to defend their great shaman.

The two-pronged attack not only surprised the players, but made short work of Matt and Leena. Lucy desperately fought to hold her ground (and is often the one getting chipped until close to death) while Thea and Helvezia rushed back to reform a frontline. The crystal lizards flanked and pushed the broken line down, and Helvezia quickly discovered that the shielded lizard was immune to slashing damage. Thea tried to carry the fight, as the resident not-Lv1, and managed to level out the lines. With Helvezia’s assistance, Thea soon cut open a path into the lair beyond; and right into the defensive line of baboon-things.

Meanwhile, Helvezia kept the attention of the shielded lizard. Lucy took advantage of the Vulnerable/Backstab rules and shunted the thing with piercing; a damage type that ended up working. The shaman desperately unloaded spells to chip away and cut down his enemy, but couldn’t summon enough force to swing the battle back. Thea soon opened his shield and cut him down; at the same time the shielded lizard was slain.

To the victor go the spoils, right? What were the spoils? I gave the players the option of rolling the treasure in session, and even choosing which tables they wanted to use (Classic vs Heroic). Part of my goal is teaching everyone how the game works, and that includes the “GM side.” To this end, I rotated through each player and had them handle the rolls while I explained each item or entry. Their dice weren’t just hot, they were explosive. They hit on damn near everything and earned some hefty rewards for the “quality” of the treasure (TT: E, if you’re curious). The biggest cheers went out when they discovered that the shield the crystal lizard carried was +3. Their hopes were dashed when they learned they’d be unable to sell it due to its true value.

Oh right. They also got a Potion of Hallucination; a bottle filled with green liquid with a swollen-armed sailor smoking a pipe on it. Ogavaka took care of identification, further encouraging the players to keep building their bond with him.

Rewards (Totals)

625xp
570gp
Potion of Hallucinated Strength
+3 Crystal Shield

Afterword

Relatively speaking, the group still moves pretty slow through the crawling portion of dungeons. Things are slowly smoothing out and the occasional lair reward, especially like today’s, keeps the hope alive. I have to say that it’s a lot of fun letting the group roll treasure for themselves; both for the surprise and the learning experience. I expect it to butt up against verisimilitude at some point; “Why doesn’t the big bad use this cool sword he had in his closet?” It’s easy to BS things; bad luck charm, cursed, wasn’t blue enough, but I imagine some folks may not be satisfied with that. Oh well.