Misbegotten Exploration
A Runewardens Diary by Sister Mara von Witten
Warning! Contains spoilers for Ptolus Chapter 25: Jabel Shammar!
Session #3
It takes us a long time and quite a few terrible injuries before all our undead foes have fallen at our feet here in the Tower of Blasphemy. Coating the floor is a layer of mummy dust – all that is left of our recent enemies. It seems that these mummies were the defenders of impiety as a concept. They are the very opposite of religious. Investigating the blues shafts of light here, we learn that they are magical rays of intense cold. We experiment in disrupting all the raylike columns, but it has no effect that we can see.
Exiting, we still can find no way into the main tower, When I use a divination to discover how to enter it, I’m told: “Wear the malefic mask.” Hmmm… a literal mask of evil, or does it have something to do with the evil fonts in the Tower of Blasphemy?
Uncertain of the meaning of Lothian’s message, we fly carefully over to the next tower. This one is designed to appear fleshlike, though it is made of stone. The Tower of the Misbegotten, we wonder?
We make quick work of a group of shadows in this tower’s lower level as we enter. The shadows had been haunting a room containing vats of chemicals, part of the laboratory of someone who had experimented with the mutability of flesh. Quite disturbing, and it reminds us of the stories of how so many strange creatures – owlbears, destrachans, and so on – were created by Eslathagos Malkith. We hoped to find the dwarven prisoner Canabulum was told about beneath one of these towers, but the only thing here is a small but empty natural cave.
As we ascend in the tower, we emerge in a room guarded by colossal statues of misshapen, cancerous humans. There’s a large adamantine valve in the ceiling 80 feet up, and it’s surrounded by a large serpent. As we enter, the statues and serpent come to life to attack us. But no, it’s not a stone serpent – it’s a stone red dragon golem, and its fire breath turns into fire elementals. By manipulating the gemstones from the golems’ eyes, Canabulum manages to call down the valve’s plug, which comes down like a lift to carry us up through the ceiling. The stone dragon quiets.
We emerge into a laboratory, stocked with a vat of green liquid, empty steel coffinlike cases, a U-shaped table, and fetuslike creatures stored in tubes of liquid. Almost all the coffins are empty – one holds a creature that’s big and hairy, like a proto-bugbear. It’s unconscious, alive, but mindless and soulless. We send it to Lothian’s care with a prayer and an application of Zophas’ Ankh of Justice.
In a closet that we purified of yellow mold infestation, we find a gold-rimmed ivory egg. Curious – our dagger Shayla believes it was made by Parnaith, wife of the Dread One. (Perhaps it is one of those little fragments of Mosul Pearl that we learned yet lived here.) We take the egg along. After a short misadventure with Zophas getting concentrated evil on his winged boots, we continue up some stairs to a chamber filled with brackish green water. Big tentacles stretch down to meet us.
Session #4
As it turns out, these tentacles are mere illusions. Armed with a water breathing effect from Canabulum, we continue climbing the stairs, then head into the brackish water. It’s fouler than anything we’ve ever breathed before. In this murk we encounter a nymph – no wait, that’s an illusion too. In reality she’s a horrid aboleth, accompanied by a Huge octopus! Somehow before we realize what’s happening, it manages to slay Canabulum and hide itself (and us!) in an inky cloud. A combination of spellpower and Aliya’s mighty fists lay the creature low, and I manage to revivify Canabulum in the heat of battle. Just as we decide to retreat, a second aboleth makes its presence known near the top of this column of fetid water. Canabulum finishes it off with vengeful relish, and we explore the chamber at the top of the column of water. It’s full of monsters of all kinds, all standing immobile as we enter the room. Ah, they’re all stuffed: specimens of creatures that the Dread One is said to have created.
In this room we see black pillars, each holding one or more severed heads. One more level up and Canabulum spies an invisible mind flayer with powerful spell shields up. The flayer is wears a bracelet bearing a cube-shaped charm, which seems to govern the wall of force-like effect he has called up around him. He seems to be connected by a polyplike strand to the walls of the tower, which rejuvenates him as long as he lives. Following our victorious battle with him, we are ready for a rest.
