Endings and Beginnings

19 April 2007-

This week involved the end of the first part of the Freeport trilogy (modified to reduce serious munchkinization on the part of the original authors) and the beginning of part two. Given that, there was mostly an orgiastic spree of spending, as our heroes liquidated the loot from the underground temple and did a little R&R. It was also a parting of ways with Kevin's mage, which we hope will be temporary, since Kevin has not been able to join us in person for some time. In our plotline, his mage has been sent with the most interesting of the thaumaturgical loot back to the larger, regional guildhall on the mainland, while the rest of us continue the investigation into the problem posed by illusion-disguised reptile men trying to summon nasty extraplanar beings in town (surely violating half a dozen local ordinances in the process).

When it appeared that our newly-filled purses were again mostly empty, we resumed caring about the locals- and just in time, because our librarian friend Egil was back to see us, telling of a nocturnal break-in at his friend Lucius's house. Between Lucius's initial kidnapping, the ransacking of his house by the cultists, our ransacking of his house looking for clues to help find the cultists, and now this, we're thinking he may as well just leave the front door open and hang out a sign reading "Please Serve Yourself".

Cultists in the Mist

22 March 2007-

After hearing the screams, we decided that swift and violent action was necessary (although the violent part might well have been arrived at anyway, even if we had approached it in a more leisurely manner- swift and violent action seems to be one of the hallmarks of our group's passage through an area). After a quick consult with our mostly-fatigued mages, we did some quick healing on our main fighters and then sent them on ahead.

Continued screams for help led us past a few side doors and through a large set of double doors into... a Mystic Mist. The Mist, for those of you not familiar with GURPS: Magic, makes those who enter confused, and yet allows the caster's allies perfect sight through the mist, etc. In only a few seconds, the defenders of the place were peppering us with crossbow bolts, while we charged about the room trying to find them. We did so, eventually, and Jeff charged the high priest, who appeared to be summoning something unpleasant through his torture of a sacrificial prisoner. Seeing Jeff finally break out of the mist, he Commanded him to drop his pick. That didn't help the priest, though, as Jeff simply fast-drew a throwing axe and sent the priest directly to his god. The cultist assistants proved to be even easier to dispatch, and whatever was being summoned went back to wherever it was coming from.

The victim turned out to be our missing librarian, and the high priest was one of the higher level librarians, and a reptile-man with an illusory disguise. We freed our man, looted the underground temple, and called it a night.