NECROPOLIS
Game summary of 21-23 October 2005
document version 4, dated 6 January 2006
Baron Ballard |
Baron Crayon |
Baron Cadra |
Air Marshall Palmerin |
Hellyeah |
Q Featherhammer |
Synopsis:
- Battlesystem combat between party and undead, party win (Battle of Osiris)
- raise dead Pogrom Island troops
- Crayon talks to Neferkare & she comes back to temple Osiris
- Menkarae sent to Pogrom Island to keep out of way
- Palmerin found guilty at his rigged trial – 6 months hard labour in salt mine, deferred for 3 months
- Hellyeah finishes training up a level
- explored Gorge of Osiris
- Cadra granted a Wish by Khemetian god Auf
- tomb of Rahotep discovered and entered
Battle of Osiris (Brothers of the sand) scenario notes
12 Wealsun, CY 577, Gorge of Osiris
1 A bad feeling of the creeps starts to eat you while you entertain the officers of the small Egyptian force that is camped outside the walls of the Temple. Dining for the evening meal under the stars was so peaceful too.
2 You go up to the ramparts to see what gives, and down the gorge you can see many shapes moving through the dark. Dull red eyes move around as a large force starts amassing further down the gorge. It's as if they are afraid to come near the lights on the wall of the temple, or maybe the peaceful feeling of the temple is holding them at bay.
3 Sending for your spyglass you see that they are long dead corpses of Egyptians. By the looks of things a good percentage of the necropolis has risen this night! With a thunderclap overhead the gruesome picture is light up again and again as heavy drops of rain start to fall. Beside you Major General Unas Atet starts shaking his head "I didn't sign up to fight my dead ancestors - i'll have no part in this". He then leaves for the safety of the temple.
4 Over the next hour you monitor the situation, taking up position down the gorge are some 820 skeletons!:
- 300 egyptian skeletal infantry, weilding short swords
- 100 ghouls in various forms of decaying egyptian ornate dress
- 100 skeleton cavalry with long swords, mounted on undead camels with nails studded through their hooves
- a rough band of 160 egyptian skeletal workers wielding various pole arms (forks, spears, pikes, etc)
- 160 tall egyptian skeletal infantry, wielding short swords
5 In your mind you go through the troops you have on hand to hold back this army of undead:
- 10 light chariots (with another 50 due to arrive in the next day or two)
- 100 light egyptian infantry skirmishers wielding short swords (the "occupying force", many of whom the commander believes will desert at the sight of the undead)
- 40 good longbowmen from Pogrom Island, well practised, but untried...
- 60 good pikemen from Pogrom Island
- 120 light egyptian infantry due to arrive in the next day or two
6 That's 210 living souls to send the undead back to oblivion, and an extra 150 if you can hold out for a day or two.
7 You smile ... never underestimate the Battle-hardened heroes of Pogrom Island (www.pogromisland.com). Crayon will send them packing, he can turn undead. You chuckle louder, almost insanely, Crayon's going to be pretty busy pressing the flesh with this lot. And as for those adventurers who have not yet tasted a battle of this scale; they have had the guts and determination to get this far, they should be able to see this through.
8 Those reinforcements are looking mighty good right now, you might be pushing shite up hill in this one - maybe you should join the ex-commander for a spot of praying in the temple...
Battle of Osiris (Brothers of the Sand)—battle summary
12 Wealsun, CY 577, Gorge of Osiris
9 Its 11pm and with all the party on the wall in the dark catching glimpses of the undead troops amassing, Cadra suggests that keeping your forces in the temple is the best battle plan, however Palmerin wishes to harry the foe with the small chariot force at your disposal.
10 Knowing that you are heavily outnumbered, you are concerned with what Major General Unas Atet was saying about some of the troops deserting. After discussing the content, Palmerine and Crayon race out to the Khemittian forces to lift the troops morale with a speech before the battle is joined. Medinet and Khonsu ride off out of the Necropolis in an attempt to find and expedite the reinforcements.
11 Crayon casts a Tongues spell and speaks to the Khemetian troops in their own tongue (see speech below). Once again Crayon’s oratory ability sways the masses and the Khemetians raise a cheer to their new leaders (and pass their moral check). The Khemetians then take up position in the temple, although Major General Unas Atet, commander of the Khemetian forces, is still nowhere to be seen!
Crayon’s speech to the Khemitians:
“Men of Khemmit why do you flee, while a stranger stands to fight for your homes and families. We are not of this land. We are not of your kin, but we represent the reckoning force that will purge the evil forces of Set from this land. In the years from now, for we will survive this onslaught, Khemitteans will ask me of this day, the stand of the fearless. And I will say that there were two groups here on that day the Fearless fighters of Khemmit and the cowards of the Necropolis. The cowards will live a life of shame which is worse than death. Which group will you belong to? If this horde is not stopped here it will escape and hunt you, your family and loved ones down. No-where in Khemmit will be safe. Join the Fearless, because that is what name they will honour you with. For there is nothing to fear, we have four patriachs of the dieties among us. Annubis, Fortubo, Herioneous and Esscencia. The Righteous brotherhood (indicates the party) that drove the giants back into the mountains at Arvin. Medinet, who by the grace of Annubis, has returned from the past to defeat this evil. And you have me, the Prophet of Esscencia. Esscencia who strengthens the fearless against the many. Evil falls down before the might of her priests. She smiles down on us, knowing of the victory we will have. Join us! Join the Fearless fighters of Khemmit. For your families, for Khemmit, and for she who comes who will wipe this evil from the land. We fear not!!!!”
12 Meanwhile Ballard and Cadra raise the morale of the Pogrom Island troops (Veteran Pikeman and Longbowmen) camped inside the temple grounds (see speech below). The Pikemen are then positioned inside the gate and the Bowmen on the ramparts. The converted temple guards are ordered to bring crates up to the ramparts above the gateway to be thrown down on the invaders. Ballard and Cadra then lower themselves down the outside wall facing the undead horde.
Ballard’s speech to the Pogrom Islanders:
“Men of Pogrom Island, you are seeing the future of our great Island paradise. Nations, cultures in the years to come will look to our lead to bring order to the world, to banish the evil from the land. That greatness is you, my fellow Pogrom Islanders. You are the strength from which our future is built. People from this day will know you as the fearless, for that is what you are. Those who weren’t here will lie awake at night, asking ‘what did I contribute’.
Fear not, as there is nothing to fear. Your Barons stand amongst you and fight by your side. No wound will you get that they will not get. No battle will you have that they will not have. If you bleed they will bleed. All men who stand before me today, from this day forth I will be proud to call brother. I vow that I will not leave the Necropolis while one of my brothers is still here. Brothers of the Sand, unite with me to turn the tide of evil back to where it belongs.”
13 The skeleton troops advance, with the undead cavalry heading to the left of the castle, the ghouls heading for the centre and the skeletons carrying ladders split to the centre and the right wall. . The barons call their forces into the castle, while Palmerin takes the risky position in the chariots, planning on a turn and run tactic.
14 Meanwhile Ballard and Cadra have left the protection of the temple and crossed the dried creek bed to a patch of rough terrain right in the path of the oncoming horde to throw a few boulders. Cadra calls upon the power of the Iron Hills as the Hammer Bearer, and Ballard quaffs a potion of Cloud Giant strength. As the skeletons approach, Ballard hurls a boulder amongst them, taking out 10. Cadra tees up the next boulder because his arm is sore (actually he’s always had a philosophical objection to throwing things after his father threw an ale mug at him and broke his nose).
15 Palmerin’s face fixes in a grimace of war, as he leads the ten chariots around the rear of the temple to head off the skeleton cavalry before they can circle around the back. The undead cavalry are peppered by the Pogrom Longbowmen who kill 10, but the sharp arrows seem only partially effective against their ugly bones.
16 Q can’t believe his eyes as Palmerin urges the charioteers straight at the undead cavalry, but at the last minute the charioteers wheel around the temple corner giving the undead a volley of arrows as they go. The charioteers ride along the face of the temple wall to the cheers of the temple forces and send a volley at the skeletons on the other side of the creek.
17 Ballard hurls another boulder and takes out 40 skeletons, while Cadra tosses some back to the temple wall so Ballard can have some parting shots when they retreat. As the skeletons get closer to the wall, the longbowmen let fly and take some out.
18 Meanwhile Crayon, who is keen to finally show the power of Essencia against undead, concludes that the skeletons will not attack the gate and eagerly leads his men to the parapets. When he sees the charioteers gallop along the base of the wall beneath him he also lets out a cheer. Any fear Crayon may have felt is shamed away as he watches the brave fool below (Palmerin) and gives a quick prayer to Essencia.
19 Cadra and Ballard retreat to the wall where Ballard hurls two more boulders destroying many of that skeleton infantry unit. Ropes are then lowered and the two commanders are lifted up the walls. Ballard then takes command of the Longbowmen while Cadra becomes the head Piker.
20 The 2 skeleton units that have ladders place them on the wall to try and make a breach in the defences, 50 on the south wall, and 50 on the east wall. The skeletons just keep coming up the ladders, wave after wave, but your small force holds them back. Resting for a moment between onslaughts, you recognise Cadra chanting Fortubio’s name and it strengthens your resolve to see this through.
21 While the skeletons flood the ladders, you recognise the special threat that the ghouls represent with their ability to paralyse your forces in fear. Crayon therefore stops turning the skeletons attacking the walls and fixes his sights on the ghouls. He calls on the deep power of Essencia against the terrifying ghouls and the creatures disintegrate back into the oblivion from which they came. The longbowmen also pepper the ghouls with good Pogrom arrows, sending them back to death’s cold embrace.
22 Around the back of the temple now, Palmerin has sent another volley into the skeletal cavalry, once again turning at the last minute to get out of sword range. The cavalry have him this time though, and he’s suddenly surrounded by undead cavalrymen. He manages to turn some of them, but as he does so Palmerin is hewn from his chariot, trampled by the undead steeds, and left to bleed to death on the field as the undead cavalry head to the Pylon of the Duat to block the path of any reinforcements.
13 Wealsun, CY 577, Gorge of Osiris
23 As the morning sun rises over the horizon at just after 6am, the skeletal onslaught continues, with the undead now trying to breach the Southern and Eastern walls simultaneously. Having lost his helmet in the melee Ballard (leading the small Khemitian force) is valiantly trying to hold back the tide of skeletons. But as his last 10 Khemitians fall, an undead sword catches him behind the ear and Ballard goes down, fighting to the end beside his men as he swore he would do - as all of you swore you would do...
24 Looking over from his defensive position with the pikemen, Cadra sees the south wall has been breached by a group of ghouls, and as he watches the last of Crayon’s Khemitian skirmishers fall to the awful creatures. Still defiantly calling on the power of Essencia to destroy the ghouls, Crayon looses his footing in a pool of blood on the battlements. In disbelief Cadra watches as the last of his companions slowly falls towards the unyielding stone as simultaneously, the last ghoul is blown apart from the power the elf has channelled from his god.
25 Looking around Cadra quickly sums up the grim situation: His pikemen are busy holding back the skeletons trying to gain the wall above the gate position, but about 60 skeletons continue their relentlessly attack on the other wall too. With the fall of Crayon, all your commanders are now down, and as he watches the last defender on the south wall is cloven in two.
26 Q Featherhammer runs through the melee to hold the breech in the south wall, planting his feet firmly for his last stand (lucky you can run in Battlesystem). The skeletons swarm to the wall top but somehow Q holds them back. While he can stop them entering the Temple, 20 or more of the grisly undead manage to gain the top of the battlements and then rush the lone dwarf.
27 But the dwarves are well known for their stubbornness, and with his stout heart pumping furiously, Q refuses to give in to the insurmountable odds. Somewhere a malign being watches in disbelief as blow after blow Q manages to stay on his feet, his daggers cleaving tendon after tendon, while always there is another evil foe to combat. At this time Cadra and his detachment of Pogrom Island Pikemen finish off the last of the skeleton warriors attacking the eastern wall. Having chanted continuously for 7 hours, Cadra now leads his Pikemen over to help Q finish off the remaining skeletons attacking the south wall. Somehow Q has managed to single-handedly hold the breech against 60 skeleton warriors, and turned what could easily have been a victory for evil into a triumph for good!
28 A ragged cheer goes up from the 40 veteran pikemen as the last skeleton is dispatched — they have survived the Battle of Osiris, and are all that remain of the Pogrom Island troops. The 40 vets gather round the 2 dwarves, offering rough congratulations on surviving the ordeal, and commiserations on the plight of their comrades. It’s just after 10:30 in the morning.
29 But it’s not quite over, as you hear the enormous clash of steel on flesh from the direction of the Pylon of the Duat. You turn your tired eyes to the northeast to see the chariot reinforcements clash head-on with the undead camel cavalry. The infantry and charioteers have arrived and are trying to get through the Pylon to aid those in the Temple. After a pitched battle in which the undead perform several tactical retreats, the chariots win the day. In disbelief you see only 10 chariots have survived the combat, and come hurtling across the plain towards you, followed by the 120 infantrymen.
30 After welcoming the small relief force, and learning that more infantry troops are on their way, you order a brief rest. Cadra then orders the pikemen to gather the dead into the Temple of Osiris. Taking part in this task himself, Cadra laughs in disbelief when he finds that Crayon has merely been knocked unconscious, astounding given the amount of blood on the elf’s robes. He also finds Ballard’s body, and realise that while the wound looks bad, he too is still breathing. Medinet casts a quick healing spell and both Crayon and Ballard and they regain consciousness, although Ballard seems disoriented and quite clearly has a concussion.
31 Some time later you find Palmerin’s body laid out in the Temple with the charioteers. While preparing to seek Palmerin’s spirit in the afterworld, Crayon realises that while he looks dead, Palmerin is in fact still tenaciously hanging onto life. After a healing spell from Medinet, Palmerin slowly comes to, and it’s quite clear that his fight to stay alive has left him severely weakened. Nothing that a few days bed rest will not cure.
Preparing to explore the Gorge of Osiris
13 Wealsun, CY 577, Temple of Osiris
32 Just before 11:30am Q reminds everyone of his metal asp head band of Set, and requests to be tied up in preperation for his return to the worship of the evil god. Ballard ropes him up securely but nothing happens, so after a while Ballard agrees to sap him, and then goes off looking for a plant for Crayon to use in a herbal sleeping draught. He’s having happy memories of the Jama Plane when he finds a fungus that will do the job.
33 After several hours sleep, Q’s demeanour seems to change, even in his sleep! Cadra goes into action, casting Detect Evil to confirm that he has gone over to the dark side, and then he casts Dispel Magic and Remove Curse to once again suspend the affliction. A final Detect Evil confirms that Q is once more himself, troublesome dwarf.
14 Wealsun, CY 577, Gorge of Osiris
34 Crayon Dimension Folds Major General Unas to Famoc to organise priests of Osiris to re-consecrate the Temple of Osiris.
35 Crayon Dimension Folds to Pogrom Island for something, but his spell goes slightly awry and he and his followers age 2 years during the journey. He tries to get an appointment with Adestra to discuss magic items, but she is not seeing anyone (apparently she is training Hellyeah).
15 Wealsun, CY 577, Gorge of Osiris
36 Having deliberated over the morality, you decide to employ your awesome clerical powers to raise the troops who perished in the Battle of Osiris. Crayon begins the long haul and ends up raising 27 Pogrom Island troops from the dead. Palmerin also partakes in the marathon, raising 18 troops from the dead. This takes them both until nightfall on 21 Wealsun to complete, although Crayon Dimension Folds all over Oearth in between raisings (described below).
37 Of all the spirits contacted, only 3 Pikeman and 3 Bowmen wished to stay dead. Unfortunately there were not enough spells to attempt to bring back 26 of the longbowmen. This meant that the surviving troops from Pogrom Island are: 57 pikemen and 11 longbowmen.
38 You also have a group discussion about what to do with the Khemitian force commander, Major General Unas. Crayon convinces your group not to oust him as a coward. You get a glimpse of Crayon’s political shrewdness (one of the reasons he was chosen to be the Prophet of Essencia) as he cooks up a scheme to make Unas look good in return for his unconditional support for your cause. From his discussions with the General, Crayon believes that Unas may be a formidable opponent in the political arena.
39 Crayon and Ballard go down to the main alter room to talk to the General, and Unas agrees to the plan, accepting the Quest spell that Crayon wishes to cast on him. The Quest will ensure that he follows through with his vows to:
(a) defend Palmerin at his upcoming trial for attempted murder (in his senior position he has been involved with many legal hearings, and is confident he can get a good result);
(b) do all within his power to get Neferkare into power; and
(c) generally provide as much assistance to your party as he can.
40 Now that he has the spells and the time, Crayon Dimension Folds to Pogrom Island. From here he scries for Neferkare by looking deep into a natural pool on the banks of the river (Reflective Pool spell in conjunction with a Combine spell and 4 of his followers). He can see her in a large apartment somewhere but does not know where. Crayon decides to Dimension Fold to Luxor with Medinet tomorrow, she was staying there in a large mansion of one of her supporters. In preparation he casts a Thoughtwave to Billy Ray, Billy Billy and Tee Morrow (who are with Neferkare) to get them to meet him outside Luxor.
16 Wealsun, CY 577
DM: the following days until 1 Richfest happened while Sean was having a quick sleep on the sofa.
41 Crayon Dimension Folds to Luxor with Medinet, and casts a Thoughtwave to Billy Ray to meet him in a temple on the edge of the city. Crayon and Medinet wait all day and finally late that night his followers arrive. They advise him that Neferkare has had to announce her contention for the throne, and her royal bloodline. Shortly after she had to go to Thebes to avoid being captured.
42 Crayon then casts another Dimension Fold to Thebes and all of them step through. Billy Ray then leads Caryon and Medinet to the place where Neferkare is staying, another mansion of a wealthy supporter.
43 After introducing Medinet to Neferkare, you discuss her progress and ideas for several hours. She agrees that the good work you are doing in the Gorge of Osiris will be of much benefit if it is seen to be done in her name. Crayon decides to ask Neferkare back to the Temple of Osiris to speak to the troops and meet Major General Unas Atet. If you can also get the Khemitian forces to pledge allegiance to her then she will have the start of an army. She thinks it’s a good idea, so he Dimension Folds them all back to the Temple of Osiris, but the fabric of the time-space continuum gets a slight tear with the frequent folding and ages all the travellers 1 year as they pass through the circular portal.
17 Wealsun, CY 577, Temple of Osiris
44 In another group meeting in the Temple of Osiris, Neferkare advises you that the run for the throne is going slow, but well. She says that she has been arguing with Menkarae a lot, and that he is causing her problems. Menkarae sees her as the rightful ruler and is impatient with people who waver in their support for her. You come up with the idea of keeping him busy on Pogrom Island making banners of Neferkare’s crest, and also writing her family tree to show her legitimate claim for the throne. Without such a document her claim is just word of mouth.
45 Ballard organises a military parade where Neferkare can review and address the troops. All the troops form up under Ballard’s command in the serene temple grounds and Crayon presses the flesh. In your speech you award all those survivors a bonus of 1 years pay, and a pension of half a years pay. In your magnificence (and with a small prompt from a Sergent who has been watching Cadra’s form) you give the pension to the families of the deceased soldiers too. And after the pesky Sergent pushes you more, you declare that this bonus and pension will be offered to all future troops involved in a major battle. After a brief discussion over who will pay (during which Ballard offered to fund the lot from his personal finances), you all commit to this system of reward for a year as a trial, and a further six years if it’s successful and does not break the bank. You agree that the cost of the bonuses will be funded from the Pogrom Island treasury.
46 Neferkare gives a great speech about the heroism of the Khemitian and Pogrom Island troops, and how they have held back the tide of evil seeking to spread like a plague across the land. She also heaps praise on each individual in your party, saying that you are the stuff of legends. She goes on to declare her royal status, and her history. At the end you consider the improved moral of the troops and declare the visit a resounding success.
47 Neferkare decides to stay overnight in the Temple of Osiris. You give her 20,000gp and some gems from the group treasure (after getting the experience points of course) to help her quest for the throne.
18 Wealsun, CY 577, Temple of Osiris
48 12 priests of Osiris arrive from Famoc to reconsecrate the Temple. You make them welcome, but they seem all business. They thank you all for liberating the temple and returning it to the worship of Osiris, and then get straight into re-consecrating it. Some time later they convey a much greater respect for you after having found your images on the wall in the Osirum. Your names will be recorded for all time in the annals of the Osiris priesthood.
49 Crayon Dimension Folds Neferkare, Billy Ray, Billy Billy and Tee Morrow back to their incognito apartment in Thebes.
20 Wealsun, CY 577, Khemit
50 Crayon Dimension Folds to Luxor to pick up Mencare and then Dimension Folds himself and Mencare to Pogrom Island. He again tries to get a meeting with Adestra but is unsuccessful, she is not seeing anyone. Menkarae agrees to work on Banners and write Neferkare’s history (keep him out of the way and busy).
21 Wealsun, CY 577, Temple of Osiris
51 Crayon Dimension Folds back to the Temple of Osiris with 4 followers to use in combine spell.
52 Q once again is prevented from returning to the worship of Set by Cadra and Ballard (Crayon had previously used the Hand of Essencia to determine the date that he would turn evil again).
53 Major General Unas discusses Palmerin’s upcoming trial with the party and outlines the defence he will use. It sounds rock solid.
22 Wealsun, CY 577
54 Q is prevented from returning to the worship of Set by Cadra and Ballard (Crayon had again used the Hand of Essencia to determine the date that he would turn evil).
55 Crayon Dimension Folds with Medinet to pick up Neferkare and again to Luxor to see the fence sitting priest of Toth (Archpriest of Khemit, Shemsi Neteru-f). Gave him a report of all that is going on in Gorge of Osiris, including the Battle of Osiris, and tried to make Neferkare look important in it all. Crayon judges that he is clearly starting to warm to her and yourselves, and that he may become a staunch ally in Neferkare’s bid for the throne. Archpriest Shemsi is impressed that you have liberated the Temple of Osiris, and encourages you to press on into the necropolis, as the magical concealing mist has not yet been lifted from the gorge area.
56 Crayon Dimension Folds back to the Temple of Osiris.
26 Wealsun, CY 577, Trial of Palmerin, Aartuat
57 The day of Palmerin’s trial is upon you and in high spirits you ride out from the Temple to the village of Aartuat. With him are Major General Unas Atet, who is defending him in court, and Khonsue, Medinet and Ballard also go along for moral support.
58 Upon arriving in the village, you are directed to the commandeered courthouse by a gruff Khemitian army corporal, it’s the building that used to be owned by the merchant Hept-f-hra. Major General Unas Atet reprimands him for poor conduct, and the corporal’s manner changes to surly.
59 Inside the “courthouse” the magistrate and prosecuting attorney are already present and discussing the case, as are a bunch of people you have not seen before. After brief introductions by the magistrate, the prosecutor, and someone who claims to be the garrison commander, a sneering Gerhit stands and recounts his story: he was sitting on his porch when your group was attacked by a large crocodile in the mill pond. After beating up on the croc, Palmerin flew at Gerhit in an unprovoked fit of rage and tried to kill him for no apparent reason. When he surrendered, Palmerin made Gerhit give up his brother’s treasure chest which was heavy with gold and parchments containing mystical writings. The miller is called to the stand and corroborates the complete story.
60 After presenting your defence, Major General Unas calls on the bandits that you captured for their testimony, but the garrison commander denies that there are any such people. Major General Unas demands to know where the real garrison commander, Fifth Lieutenant Hamephat, is so you can call on his testimony. But the guy you have not seen before stands and announces that he is the garrison commander, and that he has been here for 3 years. The magistrate accepts his testimony, and overrules Major General Unas’s dissent.
61 Moving on, Major General Unas presents your papers, but these are taken by the magistrate and never seen again. Unas then calls the Priest of Hapy, but everyone in the courthouse denies knowledge that any such man ever existed, let alone lives in Aartuat. The Major General doesn’t miss a step though, and goes on to recount all the events surrounding the incident, and makes a pretty strong case for Palmerin. But in the end the magistrate asks Palmerin directly if he physically attacked Gerhit without being attacked by Gerhit first. To this Palmerin honourably answers yes.
62 Sadly you can not mention your mission here on behalf of Archpriest Shemsi Neteru-f, which would surly have you acquitted of all charges. But you know from his initial briefing that he will deny any involvement with you, which may only make matters worse.
63 After a short deliberation period the Magistrate announces the verdict: guilty. He advises that the penalty is usually death by the lash, but as there was some ambiguity in this case, the sentence is 6 months hard labour in one of the Pharaoh’s salt mines, to start immediately.
64 Unas quietly mentions to you that this court is heavily “rigged”, and takes down the names of the magistrate and the prosecutor, as does Q.
65 Knowing that Palmerin is an integral part of your group and needed to bring down Rahotep, you get Unas to approach the Magistrate and prosecutor for a deferral of 6 months. It’s clear they want a very significant bribe to do it and they neither appear interested in money. Indeed they hint at knowing that you have magical arms and armour, and indicate that they may consider deferring the sentence for 3 months for a large donation to their collection.
66 After considering the need, you end up bribing the magistrate and prosecutor with the following:
(a) 2 x Footmans maces +1
(b) 2 x Chainmail +1
(c) 2 x Mace +1
(d) 1 x Scimitar +2
(e) 1 x Studded Leather armour +1
(f) 1 x Composite Short Bow +1
67 Palmerin is then advised to present himself to the magistrate in Famoc on 27 Harvester CY 577. If he does not show, his life is forfeit.
68 For your role playing and selfless bribery, the DM awards each of you 2,000 XP. You quietly head back to the Temple of Osiris, making sure that no-one sees where you are going. Upon briefing the others of what has transpired there is uproar. Q demands that Unas tell him the names of the corrupt officials who took your belongings, and declares that he may visit them in the night to reclaim what is yours. While Unas gives him the names, he does not know where in Famoc they live.
69 To make matters worse, you once again have to prevent Q from returning to the worship of Set. Cadra casts Dispel Magic and Remove Curse to suspend the affliction for still more days, as the evil asp headband almost seems to malignly watch the spells being cast.
28 Wealsun, CY 577
70 Hellyeah finishes training at 6pm on Pogrom Island, and gets a great new spell as a bonus. Crayon Dimension Folds in to pick him up and then accompanies him back to the Temple of Osiris.
1 Richfest, CY 577, Necropolis
71 At 6:30am your party, fully healed and spelled up, leave the Temple of Osiris to explore the Necropolis in the Gorge of Osiris and hopefully find Rahotep’s tomb.
72 You first visit the Funerary Chapel of the Duat, and Medinet explains that in his time, when people visited the necropolis to pay their respects to the dead, they were expected to visit here first to pay homage to the gods. In the Chapel, you are accosted by the ghost of a long dead Pharaoh Binitis I. Medinet advises you that his funeral urn must have been desecrated and then hidden here somewhere, and after some combat where Cadra ages somewhat, Crayon turns the Ghost and backs it into a corner while the rest of you search for the urn and clean it. Once the urn is clean the spirit sighs and disappears.
73 You then go to visit the mastaba opposite the Chapel, and find that it is a shrine to Bast, the goddess of cats. It appears to be clean, but empty.
74 
You go further on into the gorge, taking the first left fork, which leads you to the shrine of Amun. Centred within the shrine is a blue statue made of stone of Amun, the god of fertility, secrets and things hidden. Searching in this shrine you find a secret chamber with evil material components, in what appears to be a demon summoning spell that activates every night. You destroy them and head off again - damn you are good...
75 Having seen all the secret chambers so far, you decide to visit the shrine to Bast again, and indeed discover a secret door in the rear wall of one of the small rooms. Behind the door, Q scouts out a long winding passage which leads to a cave in which several beings appear to be asleep (you detect that they are evil). You decide that before tackling them you should rest up, so you head back to the Temple.
2 Richfest, CY 577, Necropolis
76 It’s 6:30am and Crayon and the other spell casters are learning spells. At 8am they are ready to go and you head out to the part human, part cat things which appear to be a secret priesthood to Bast. Q is bitten during the ensuing melee, but nothing he can’t handle, since you soundly defeat the creatures, to the point that Q even saps two and takes them prisoner. From here you take them back to the Temple and lock them up.
77 Pushing on into the Necropolis, you enter another mastaba, but after lots of searching you decide there is nothing of note there aside from a secret door to another gorge behind, but Medinet says it’s the wrong way.
78 The next mastaba is further down the gorge and is larger than the others. The hieroglyphs declare it to be the Chapel of the Sun, and is dedicated to the gods of bright nature in general, including Ra, Atmu, Horus, Hathor etc. Cadra gets a warm pleasant feeling from the statue of Ra that he is carrying. In one side chapel Medinet is reading a mural on how to perform a sacred ritual to the god Auf. Finding some robes and equipment in a secret room nearby, Cadra reasons that they must be there for a reason and decides to perform the ritual to the good god that Medinet translates for him from the wall. Once the ritual is complete, Cadra is granted a brief audience with the god Auf and asked "are you pure of deed?". Cadra tells the god your reasons for being in the nercopolis, the god considers this and then asks "what is your greatest desire?" (which Sean correctly interprets as being a Wish). Cadra's response is:
"my greatest desire is that the evil influence of Set no longer has hold of my comrade Q Featherhammer"
79 As a result, Q’s Asp headband floats off his head and drops to the floor. Q swears a life-debt to Cadra in return for this selfless act (and the DM awards a large chunk of XP to Sean’s character for such excellent game play). You head on back to the Temple.
3 Richfest, CY 577, Necropolis
80 Crayon casts a Thought Capture on the prisoners from the Bast mastaba and decides that may well have been Lycanthropes. Q remembers being bitten by one of them and becomes very interested in being cleansed, just in case. Medinet casts 6 Cure Disease spells on you all.
DM: Just as well Crayon thought they were lycanthropes, Q had indeed contracted Lycanthropy, and was on his way to having a dual personality!
81 Later than night you debate whether it is lawful or good to execute evil sentient creatures without a trial, and whether it is ethical for Crayon to take any of the dead bodies for possible future spell components. the need to cleanse Oearth of evil beings by slaying them or if you should let them live and just relocate them. You decide to keep them for trial at a later date.
82 Once again you head further down the gorge, eventually coming to the last mastaba at the apparent end of the gorge, the Shrine to Buto, depicted as a cobra-headed goddess. Medinet is sure that there should be a Y-junction here and that you should take the left fork, so after a lot of searching you find a secret door in the mastaba that leads to a secret room. In here a spirit woman appears and kindly but firmly asks you to leave.
83 Medinet speaks to the long dead priestess for some time, and she apparently wishes you luck. She points to the far end wall where you find another secret door, and the gorge leading to the tomb beyond.
84 At this point Medinet announces that the tomb is down this narrow gorge about an hour away. You decide to head back to the Temple of Osiris to rest up before taking on Rahotep’s Tomb.
4 Richfest, CY 577, Necropolis
85 After an edgy nights rest, you decide to get rid of the extra evil objects that you are carrying. Crayon opens a Dimension Fold to Pogrom Island, and the following go through: Crayon, Cadra, Q, Palmerin, and Ballard. Medinet, Khonsu and Hellyeah remain in the Temple for the day.
86 Back on Pogrom Island someone put Glyphs on the treasury door (Glyphs of Warding?), and you use a StoneShape to manipulate your large oblong block of stone that has the evil Helmet from the Temple of Osiris and the evil Staff from Ul-Drakken. It now encompasses the following items so they are in it’s middle and inaccessible to people:
(a) evil Helmet from the Temple of Osiris;
(b) evil Staff from Ul-Drakken;
(c) Asp headband of Set;
(d) 2 x evil daggers of Set that Q was using.
87 Finally Crayon casts a Weighty Chest on the stone block. When you go back up to the main conference room on the top floor, you instruct Stephen Bookbind not to let anyone in either the war room below, or the treasury below that. He agrees to promulgate this order to everyone.
88 You try to see Adestra, but she has apparently been closeted in the tower for the last few days and does not respond to your summons. Stephen notes that her School of the Black Star seems to be going well, with quite a few wizards arriving over the last month.
89 After various personal errands and admin, Crayon Dimension Folds you all back to the Temple of Osiris for the night.
5 Richfest, CY 577, Necropolis
90 At 6:30am you head out from the Temple on your last day, and you now know where the Tomb of Rahotep lies. Medinet seems to be getting more revitalized and confident than you have seen since you restored his sanity.
91 At 8:30am you stand at the terminus of the ravine that Medinet knows is where the tomb lies. Looking around you spot a ledge 40 feet up the side of the gorge wall. You climb and use a rope to get everyone up there. There is a huge stone slab and the walls on either side are covered with hieroglyphs. You check for magic and find it in abundance everywhere on the walls and the slab.
92 The immense stone slab that has sealed the place for a thousand years slowly rises with a grinding protest once you all have your hands placed on the hieroglyphs representing your character classes.
93 A mist seeps out from under the slab as it rises and a large incorporeal figure of hideously evil visage manifests in front of you. It speaks:
“I am the Set Rahotep!
No man was more potent when I was amongst those dwelling in the land of Khemit. In death I am greater still!
Do you not fear serpents? I am the Aapep Rahotep!
Who does not tremble before the monsters of the Duat? I am one!
Does not your flesh crawl at the sight of the terrible Wyrm? I am the Deathwyrm Rahotep!
Does your blood not run cold before the face of a fiend? Know then that I am Rahotep the Fiend!
Who shuns not Demons? Shun me for I am the Demon Rahotep, the red devil!
And which fool listens? That one is wise!
Praise Set and the Set Rahotep, that one, and pity the rest!”
94 You pass through the entrance and there is a long hall of plastered walls and brightly painted pictures and hieroglyphs. As you step inside some hieroglyphs directly opposite then entrance begin to glow. Medinet translates them for you:
Right and left you will turn to seek me.
Turn as you might, there is no escaping my Curse.
Foul is the Death that shall hunt you down, swift it’s strike, burning it’s measure of punishment.
Hunt the way as lowly ones. My iron teeth will devour you.
Delve deep , and the tears you shed will burn and wash you away.
Turn and twist back and forth, and the end is the same as afore.
Beat down the portal to no avail, for rock is unyeilding.
Fir gholle or kindly demon you are not; no gate passes you through.
So you must accept the dark curse, and thus find you dark fate!
95 You investigate the alcoves and stone slabs to the left and right and at each end of the corridor, but they are all trapped and seem to have something to do with transportation. You decide to cast 5 Locate Object spells to triangulate the direction of the 5 remaining Evil Items, to be able to do this, you also cast a Rapport to get a mental image of the objects from Medinet's memory. The Scepter of Set is straight ahead and on the same level as the party, so you decide to go through the western wall. Half way long the western wall (where you are about to break it) you find a painted picture on the wall of Rahotep, with an inscription below it:
To lie most cleverly is to tell the truth when one least expects it, so that the unbelieving fool will venture forth to his certain doom.
96 Searching for traps, you find another one, and after some time Q believes that he has disarmed it (he thinks it’s a gas trap). Cadra beats down the plaster wall carefully and you find a small alcove 5 feet across and 10 feet wide. The small area is also has plaster walls, but only thin and you soon find a limestone slab door in the west wall. On the slab are the hieroglyphs:
Right and left you came, but even so you have only assured your deaths. Curse you!
97 Someone hears a scraping noise coming from the entrance and on investigating, sees the immense stone slab that had sealed the place for thousand years slow closing once more. You all sprint over to the entrance fearing being buried alive with Rahotep. Hellyeah puts his 4 Immovable Rods in the stone slab’s path (now down to waist height) in an effort to hold it open. The heavy slab grinds a bit, but the rods hold and the door is kept open. Once again Q secretly lusts after the Rods.
98 Breaking down the slab (Q said it wasn’t trapped), you find an ornate room. There are pillars in each corner with bones on top, and crammed in around the walls are 12 wooden sarcophagi. In the west wall are two great doors painted to represent a massive throne with a black skeleton sitting in it, with a painted vulture with a human head perched on the back corner of it. Al around the picture are large hieroglyphs showing profanities.
99 You open the coffins and find large mummies in them holding red lotus blossoms, and unwrapping one, you find it’s made of some kind of black metal. Ballard suggests that you throw them off the 40 foot cliff outside (down into the ravine), so you do and 7 of the things shatter when they hit the ground.
100 After the hard work lugging the things you examine the skeletal figure painting on the doors some more and it becomes 3-dimensional and talks to you, offering riches and other great rewards if you touch a certain part of the painting. None of you do, however the voice continues to offer different rewards for touching different parts of the painting, so after so many offers Ballard decides to touch the right foot of the painting when offered “insight into all the futures of this land”, but nothing happens.
101 Ballard has had enough and decides to bash down the doors (after Q has cleared them of course). When the plaster shatters off the stone doors a strange flapping noise is heard and you see the man headed vulture creature from the painting fly over you and into the hallway and then out of the tomb (see pic below). As it flies it croaks:
“Do what you will mortal jackels, defilers of tombs! My great Khu is loosed by your bungling, nevermore to be imprisoned in stone! I will return to collect a reckoning from each of you when the moment is ripe!”
102 When the doors finally shatter into a stony mess, fiery hieroglyphs suddenly spring alight in the air, cursing you for disturbing the House of Set Rahotep. Then an energy fills the chamber and a palpable wave of evil is felt by all.
103 Hearing a noise from below, you look over the edge of the ledge and see the metal Mummies that you tossed over are now animated and trying in vain to climb back up to the tomb.
104 With the door apparently secured, you go back to the new room beyond the doors that you just smashed down. It’s clearly an inner shrine and an important place, with lavish amounts of gold jewellery and other items made of gold and gemstones. In the middle of the room is a screen behind which you see a large sarcophagus with a heavy granite lid.
105 Oh crap — Q are there any traps on that thing? You bet there are, everything else has been trapped! Who’s going to open it to see Rahotep first? I think I’ll hang back a bit…