4. The First Expedition

Thrudmarr watches his companions with growing confusion as they walk into the mist and talk to the black stone. His brow furrows as he tries to understand what game they're playing. He shifts the lantern from hand to hand nervously, occasionally glancing at the strange writing that everyone keeps looking at.

"Umm, why friends talk to rock?" He shakes his head sadly. "Friends go crazy. Rock no talk!"
Thrud nods vigorously at this suggestion. "Grim right. Come, crazy friends! Leave rock!"

"Lead on, brave Thrudmarr!"

Done!

Now that you've settled into the mapping, I'm going to stop providing corrections for any mistakes (unless the mistakes are on my side). Of course, Jackie/testlum doesn't have to take sole responsibility for the mapping - others can double-check the accuracy and highlight any errors).

You backtrack to the simple wooden door at the bottom of the short flight of steps. It opens to a small rectangular room, the floor of which is covered with a thick layer of trash - bits of leather, ruined clothing, scraps of metal, and a foul-smelling bolus of decaying animal matter.

Mapping information: rectangular room, 25’ (east-west) x 15’ (north-south). You enter through a door in the northern-most section of the western wall. There are no other visible exits.

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13:20 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …

"Blegh, what died here? It's making my eyes water." Jacky comments, staring at the disgusting mass. He takes a few steps back from the stench. "Before you ask, I'm not touching that."

Ellagel observed the cesspit dispassionately. "Was the smell emanating from a specific spot, or did the entire place smell so badly?", she wondered.

Zach is still moping over not getting an answer from Thoth and doesn’t even notice the smell.

Yes, there is a single foul-smelling clump. It is towards the northeast corner of the room.

---
13:20 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …

Thrudmarr wrinkles his nose at the foul smell and holds the lantern out to illuminate the trash-filled room. "Smell bad! Something dead?" He points at the rotting mass in the corner with disgust.

He approaches the lump and extends his axe towards the reeking pile of decay, keeping his body as far back as his reach allows. The muscles in his thick arms tense as he cautiously prods at the rotting mass with the tip of his axe blade, ready to leap back at any sign of movement.

Grim stands just behind Thrud. His trusty hammer at the ready.

Ella followed Thrudmarr into the room, but did not approach the focal point of the disgusting smell. She examined the eastern wall and the south eastern corner of the wall to determine if there was any evidence of passage through the room and, possibly, some kind of concealed doors.

All Thrudmarr succeeds in doing is releasing more of the noxious smell from the clump of decaying matter. It yields easily to the prodding of his axe and seems entirely inanimate.
Ella does find something! In the easternmost section of the southern wall, she discovers a poorly concealed 4’ square panel that slides to reveal a narrow (5’ wide) passage leading south. With her infravision, she can see that it continues for 30’ before arriving at a flight of ascending rough-hewn steps. These steps continue due south for another 20’ before ending abruptly at a stone wall.

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13:40 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …

All Thrudmarr succeeds in doing is releasing more of the noxious smell from the clump of decaying matter. It yields easily to the prodding of his axe and seems entirely inanimate.
Ella does find something! In the easternmost section of the southern wall, she discovers a poorly concealed 4’ square panel that slides to reveal a narrow (5’ wide) passage leading south. With her infravision, she can see that it continues for 30’ before arriving at a flight of ascending rough-hewn steps. These steps continue due south for another 20’ before ending abruptly at a stone wall.

---
13:40 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …

Ella nods in satisfaction at this discovery.

"Master Grimidek, Zacharias Polipulis, do you want to go in first? Dwarven eyes to avoid faulty stonework, and strong sinews to push back against any foes?"

The elf continued to study the passage while adding, "Must be something worth hiding behind a trash pit!"

Thrudmarr wipes his axe blade on some nearby scraps of leather with obvious disgust after poking the smelly pile. His head perks up at Ella's discovery and he holds the lantern higher, trying to illuminate the passage she found.

"Ella lady find secret way!" He holds his lantern up and peers into the darkness beyond the doorway and looks back at the others, clearly eager to be away from the smelly room. "We go? Thrudmarr be right behind Grim and Zach, hold light."

One hand covering his nose, Jacky motions for the strapping warrior to lead them on. The sooner away from the stink the better!

You step through the low concealed opening and into the passage beyond. The walls of the passage are of plain rock, with none of the finesse or finishing you’ve seen elsewhere on this level. The passage is also narrow, forcing you to travel in single file, although it’s sufficiently high that you can all walk without stooping.

The passage continues due south for 30’ before a flight of rough-hewn stone steps lead upwards, also due south, for 20’. They terminate at a dead end.

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2:00 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …

Jacky hunts about for another secret door. It worked the last time, after all.

Ellagel too, moves forward to examine the end of the passage, and the walls to either side, taking her time to search any hollow wall of that fails, she will examine the ceiling and floor, hoping to find a trapdoor.

It takes a turn, but both Jacky and Ella locate a secret door leading south in the wall at the top of the steps. It opens to reveal a large chamber of classic Archontean construction. Without actually entering the room, this is what you can see with the aid of the light from Thrud’s lantern …

You are standing in an opening in the chamber’s northern wall. Immediately to your left (east), the northern wall extends beyond the range of your light. To your right (west) the northern wall continues for 15’, before reaching the western wall. About 20’ south of the chamber’s northwest corner, in the western wall, you can see an iron-bound wooden door. The room has a high ceiling that extends 20’ above you.

In front of you, to the south, as far as the light from your lantern allows, you can see numerous floor-to-ceiling columns that gleam with hints of yellow gold. The columns are regularly spaced at 10’ intervals. Between the columns, several bodies litter the floor - you count at least three within the range of your lantern.

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2:10 pm, Basilsday 2nd Lucreon (April) 2993 AEP
Ellagel, Elven Fighter/Magic User 1/1: 6/6, 90’
Grimidek, Dwarven Cleric 1: 9/9, 60’
Jacky, Halfling Fighter/Thief 1/1: 6/6, 60’
Thrudmarr, Wiskin Fighter 1: 5/5, 90’ (Lantern)
Zacharias, Archontean Fighter 1: 10/10, 60’

Link to Jacky’s maps …