Dungeons & Drogans: Session XXXVI
Session XXXVI Summary
Coltaine, Win'tyr and Sorrow descend the chains into an enormous chamber. A yawning, black portal dominates the northern wall. Something strains against the darkness within, as if it were a thin film keeping back a vicious, clawed beast.
Before the black portal stands Kalarel. He holds, by the throat, the underpriest the Drogans had sent down the pit. He is injured, but very much alive. "You have failed me for the last time, Reginald," Kalarel says, then hurls him backwards into the black portal where the claws swallow him up.
In this room can also be found the imp the Drogans previously encountered, a host of undead sentinels, a human woman wielding a maul, and a dwarf wielding a warhammer and holy symbol. Sorrow recognizes these last two as Morgan and Rhekd, minions of Kalerel.
Battle commences.
Coltaine heads West, charging towards Kalarel, as his companions head East, dealing with the undead.
The dwarf calls out to Kalarel from across the room, "We were never with you, Kalarel. We don't worship Orcus." He and Morgan then join the Drogans in their battle against Kalarel.
Kalarel replies, "I find your lack of faith disturbing," then speaks to the tiefling. "Sorrow, you have been at my side all this time. Don't make me destroy you."
Sorrow calls upon her knowledge of magical rituals and begins closing the portal.
Kalarel reduces Coltaine to 4 HP with a shadowy bolt and says, "I have you now."
Coltaine, out of healing surges, says, "I'm not done yet," and with one swing of his sword, chops through two skeletons, then charges up to Kalarel.
Kalarel says, "Impressive." He continues, "Douven Staul has taught you well. Coltaine, you do not yet realize your importance. You've only begun to discover your power. Join me, and I shall complete your training."
Kalarel vanishes in a puff of smoke, and reappears before the portal.
Coltaine replies, "Douven Staul trained me never to bow to the forces of evil. Your reign is over, Kalarel."
With the undead re-dead, Coltaine's companions and new surprise allies come to his aid.
Kalarel says, "Coltaine, if only you knew the power of the dark side."
The imp casts a spell on Coltaine, and the human collapses.
Morgan says, "I have a bad feeling about this."
Kalarel beats Morgan with his rod, taking her down.
As round 8 ends, Coltaine is down, Morgan is down, Sorrow is bloodied. Only Kalarel and the imp remain, but Kalarel seems barely wounded.
Kalarel takes a knee before the portal and asks, "What is thy bidding, my master?"
The Imp reduces Sorrow to 4 HP.
The dwarf joins Sorrow in her efforts to close the portal, then heals Coltaine back up to 5 HP.
Kalarel mutters to the portal, "He will join us or die, my master."
Win'tyr tries to help close the portal, but gets zapped by a bolt of energy that feeds the rift. The portal looks like it's on the verge of stabilizing.
The dwarf completes the penultimate step toward closing the rift. The portal is now teetering on the brink of stabilizing or collapsing.
Sorrow completes the final step, and as the portal begins shrinking, one last claw reaches and grabs Kalarel. It pulls Kalarel through the rift, and as he is being dragged into the Shadowfell, he shouts, "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
Session XXXVI - Part 1 Summary
Coltaine, Win'tyr and Sorrow descend the chains into an enormous chamber. A yawning, black portal dominates the northern wall of the chamber. Something strains against the darkness within, as if it were a thin film keeping back a vicious, clawed beast.
A circle of blazing runes has been inscribed on the floor by the portal.
Before the black portal stands a human wearing a horned helm and carrying a skull-capped rod -- Kalarel.
He holds, by the throat, the underpriest the Drogans had sent down the pit. He is injured, but very much alive. "You have failed me for the last time, Reginald," Kalarel says, then hurls him backwards into the black portal where the claws swallow him up, silencing his screams.
In this room can also be found the imp the Drogans previously encountered, a host of undead sentinels, a human woman wielding a maul, and a dwarf wielding a warhammer and holy symbol. Sorrow recognizes these last two as Morgan and Rhekd, minions of Kalerel.
As Coltaine, Wint'yr and Sorrow touch down into a pool of blood, a white-skinned undead creature wearing wizardly robes -- a wight -- launches a bolt of purple energy at Win'tyr, who dodges it.
Kalarel steps forward, bearing his teeth, and points his rod at Coltaine, sending forth a bolt of black energy. The warlord is struck for 8 damage and weakened.
Sorrow and Win'tyr approach the portal as they engage the undead to the East. They hear whispers issuing from the portal, mostly unintelligible, but the name "Kalarel" distinguishes itself.
Win'tyr pegs the wight with an arrow.
A skeleton draws a longbow and strikes Win'tyr with an arrow for 5 damage.
Coltaine heads West, charging towards Kalarel. A skeleton slashes him with a longsword for 5 damage.
Claws reach out of the portal and strike Sorrow, twenty feet away, for 12 damage, and drag her closer to its gaping maw.
Coltaine is pegged by another arrow down to 25/45 HP.
Win'tyr is struck by another arrow.
Rhekd shouts, "Now be the time to strike, Morgan!" He bears his holy symbol at the wight and mutters a prayer. The wight lights up with divine energy.
Round 1 ends.
The wight spins around and says, with a voice from the grave, "You treacherous mongrel." Morgan flees in fear.
Sorrow moves away from the portal and summons a vertical column of golden flames to sear a skeleton to ash.
An arrow pegs Sorrow down to 15/33 HP.
Win'tyr shoots a skeleton dead, but as it collapses into a pile of bones, the wight reanimates it.
Coltaine inspires himself to heal, then takes down a skeleton.
Morgan regains her composure and rejoins the battle.
Session XXXVI - Part 2 Summary
Claws issue from the portal and strike Win'tyr down to 7 HP.
Sorrow hears the whispers from the portal calling to her and is compelled to walk towards it.
An arrow strikes Sorrow down to 10 HP.
Win'tyr is pegged by another arrow down to 2 HP.
The dwarf calls out to Kalarel from across the room, "We were never with you, Kalarel. We don't worship Orcus."
Kalarel replies, "I find your lack of faith disturbing."
The dwarf then heals Win'tyr up to 11/30 HP.
Sorrow moves away from the portal and calls upon her second wind to heal up to 26/33 HP.
Kalarel calls out to the tiefling, "Sorrow, you have been at my side all this time. Don't make me destroy you."
Coltaine is struck in the flank by an arrow, down to 35 HP. The human continues to plow his way through skeletons toward Kalarel, taking down another one.
Morgan bashes the wight with her maul.
The dwarf destroys a skeleton with sacred light, but the wight reanimates it. Win'tyr nonetheless gains 3 temporary hit points from the dwarf's magic. The dwarf then bestows more healing upon Win'tyr, raising him to 19/30 HP.
Round 3 ends. 3 skeletons are down, 5 remain. The wight, the imp, and Kalarel still stand.
Sorrow calls upon her knowledge of magical rituals and performs the first step in closing the portal. She then runs, slips, and falls into the pool of blood.
The imp casts a spell on Coltaine, wounding the man down to 30 HP, and two arrows drop him to 20 HP.
Win'tyr moves past a skeleton and is slashed down to 17/30 HP.
Coltaine calls upon his second wind, to heal up to 31/45 HP.
Morgan smashes her maul against the ground as she tries to hit the wight. There is a burst of golden light, and Win'tyr is healed up to 24/30 HP.
Coltaine parries a sword, but is struck by another down to 26/45 HP.
Session XXXVI - Part 3 Summary
Round 4 ends.
The wight calls out, "Your end is nigh," and Morgan and Win'tyr are horrified by his visage. They flee into the corner of the room.
Sorrow completes another step needed to close the portal.
Kalarel hurls another shadowy bolt at Coltaine, striking him for 11 damage. "I have you now," says Kalarel.
The imp casts his spell on Coltaine, dropping him to 8/45 HP.
A skeleton nails Sorrow with an arrow down to 21/33 HP.
Win'tyr pegs the wight with two arrows, and it lurches over, bloodied.
Coltaine, at 8/45 HP, is out of healing surges. He says to Kalarel, "I'm not done yet," and with one swing of his sword, chops through two skeletons, then charges up to Kalarel.
Kalarel takes note of the warlord and says, "Impressive."
Morgan returns to the battle, raises her maul, and strikes the wight. There is a burst of radiant energy and the wight explodes.
Sorrow answers the portal's whispers by approaching it. The claws reach out and drag her even closer, reducing her to 13/33 HP.
A skeleton slashes the dwarf, who then smites the skeleton.
Sorrow completes another step toward closing the rift. She strikes Kalarel with a bolt of frigid energy.
Ignoring Sorrow and looking at Coltaine, Kalarel says, "Douven Staul has taught you well. Coltaine, you do not yet realize your importance. You've only begun to discover your power. Join me, and I shall complete your training."
Kalarel vanishes in a puff of smoke, and reappears in the center of the magic circle before the portal.
The imp wounds Coltaine down to 4 HP.
Sorrow is struck by an arrow down to 8 HP.
Win'tyr strikes down a skeleton.
Coltaine replies to Kalarel, "Douven Staul trained me never to bow to the forces of evil. Your reign is over, Kalarel."
Morgan rushes forward to engage Kalarel in melee.
Sorrow hears the whispers and approaches the portal. The claws strike Morgan.
Round 6 ends. The wight is dead and all but one skeleton.
Sorrow successfully completes another step required to close the portal.
Kalarel calls out, "Coltaine, if only you knew the power of the dark side."
The imp casts its spell on Coltaine, and the human collapses.
Session XXXVI - Part 4 Summary
Sorrow is pegged with an arrow down to 3 HP.
Morgan speaks for the first time and says, "I have a bad feeling about this." She then lays hands on Sorrow and heals her up to 13/33 HP.
The claws reach out from the portal and bloody Morgan.
The dwarf bolsters his allies.
Round 7 ends. One skeleton, the imp, and Kalarel remain. Coltaine is down, Sorrow is bloodied, Morgan is bloodied.
Sorrow burns Kalarel with fire magic.
Kalarel beats Morgan in the face with his rod. The human appears generally grievously wounded.
The imp casts his spell on the dwarf, wounding him down to 15 HP.
The skeleton pegs the dwarf down to 10/33 HP.
Win'tyr takes down the last skeleton and pegs the imp.
Morgan collapses under ongoing damage.
The dwarf calls upon his second wind, healing up to 18/33 HP, then activates the power of his dwarven chain mail and heals further, up to 26/33 hp. The dwarf begins the second half of the process that will close the portal.
Round 8 ends. Coltaine is down, Morgan is down, Sorrow is bloodied. Only Kalarel and the imp remain.
Kalarel takes a knee before the portal and asks, "What is thy bidding, my master?"
The Imp reduces Sorrow to 4 HP.
Win'tyr tries to parrot the dwarf, muttering some nonsense words to try to close the portal, and nearly gets zapped by a beam of energy that shoots forth from the frothing blackness.
The dwarf continues closing the portal, then stabilizes Coltaine. The dwarf then shines like a beacon of hope, and Coltaine awakes with 5 HP, and Sorrow is healed up to 9 HP.
That ends Round 9. Coltaine is awake, but bloodied. Sorrow is bloodied, Morgan is in bad shape, and Kalarel seems barely injured.
Kalarel mutters to the portal, "He will join us or die, my master," then rises to his feet.
Win'tyr mumbles some more nonsense and gets zapped by a bolt of energy for 9 damage. The portal looks like it's on the verge of stabilizing thanks to the energy it zapped from the elf.
Win'tyr misses with his daily power.
Coltaine springs to his feet and inspires Sorrow to heal up to 23/33 HP.
The dwarf completes the penultimate step toward closing the rift. The portal is now teetering on the brink of stabilizing or collapsing.
Round 10 ends.
Sorrow scorches the imp, then comes in and steals the dwarf's thunder, completing the final step. The portal begins shrinking, one last claw reaches and grabs Kalarel. It pulls Kalarel through the rift, and as he is being dragged into the Shadowfell, he shouts, "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
