You stand 'neath the looming peaks of the Abracam Mountains. Legends tell tales of a powerful Wizard buried under the cragged ridge. Drawn-and-quartered a dozen miles aloft by the Verdekasz brood of Black Dragons, the pieces of his corpse were scattered across the chain by the winds. Wherever his limbs fell, a great and accursed power has dwelled.

Of course, such superstitions are meant for children's tales and gullible tourists from whom pennies can be pilfered and pounds stolen. But myth begets myth. And a century ago, so they say, a group of evil Wizards saw fit to spirit away a powerful artifact within the earth. For the world was becoming "too good" and the Wizards felt afraid the Forever Stone would fall into the right hands, instead of the wrong ones where it had been kept.

Greedy Dwarves, who coveted the Wizards' money and their protection to allow them to mine the depths of the Abracam Mountains, took up the task of burying the Stone. But alas, corruption seeped among the hearts and the minds of the company. In an orgy of magic and bloodshed, they all perished. Or so they say.

As you approach the portal to the mines where your map hath led, you see in the distance a set of misshapen, half-broken beams of termite-infested wood holding up the entrance. But more to your immediate vicinity is a humble outhouse — the place where all upright creatures perform their duty in equal splendor. It's own warning, graver even than that of the mines, shouts out, "KEEP OUT!"

Adventurers
Sunshine
Rook
Deruvid
Silverghost
Jack

Resources
Out of Character Thread
PARTY MAP

Deaths
Galthir Aramath — Encounter One — Purple Worm

Please strive to post on the better side of once every 48 hours. Say something in the OC Thread if you will be away for a longer time.

Reserved.

Lo, the Adventure Begins

A ramshackle wooden outhouse stands about 30 feet from the entrance to the mine. Carved into the door are the words “KEEP OUT!” in Common.

"Ominous... and a little silly. Are we to keep out of the outhouse or the mines?" asks Sunshine.

~SE++

"Hmmmm..." the large warforged muses with a slight rumble as he plants the end of his quarterstaff solidly onto the ground and surveys the area. Moving his attention from the outhouse to the mine entrance and then back again. "Perhaps both?" Turning his large yellow eyes to the ground, he looks about to see if any footprints are visible among the rocks and dirt that litter the ground before the outhouse and mineshaft. Does anyone see signs of recent activity?"

Deruvid crouches low and traces his hands along the dirt and foliage a few yards from the mine entrance, looking for signs of recent tracks.

"Possibly...but not likely."

As Deruvid moves towards the mine portal, studying the ground before him, he is able to discern only about 20ft into the entrance from wandering sunlight pressing into the darkness. There are no lights, lanterns, or torches along the walls further into the adit that he can see.

Studying the ground before the entryway, he can see the dirt is loose and the scrub grass is trampled. Though not sure who or what, Deruvid gets the sinking notion that someone has been here recently.



Since there is a character in the party (Rook) with appropriate map-making materials, here is THE MAP LINK.

Sunshine takes out two copper coins, a couple pinches of phosphorescent moss and casts Light on each one. "Here, take this," she says, tossing one lit coin to Deruvid. "Whose going to take the rear?" she asks. If anyone volunteers, she'll toss them the second coin, if no one does, she'll take rear and hold the coin herself.



~SE++

Rook glances back at the outhouse and its eerie warning one last time, and then to his allies behind him before turning his attention back to Deruvid near the gaping maw of the mine. He tights his grip on his well-worn quarter staff and presses on, walking to the threshold alongside the druid. He flexes the grip on his weapon again as if in anticipation of whatever threats may lie within the dark pit in the earth and finally he speaks. "Shall I go first...?"

With a quick flick of the wrist, Deruvid catches the glowing coin from Sunshine. He then offers it to Rook with a grim look on his elven face.
"I'm right behind you, but beware; something has come this way recently, however I can't say exactly what."
To the rest of the group he needlessly addresses, "Be on your guard."

Sunshine swipes a small piece of fleece from her cloak and quickly weaves a Minor Illusion of a military outfit around herself, willing it to move with her movements as she salutes and says, "Sir, yes Sir!" Just as quickly as the clothing appears on her, is washes away with a small, dismissive flick of her wrist and is again replaced by her normal cloak and robe set. Grinning a wide smile, she moves to follow the group if they proceed into the mines.



~SE++

Galthir lingers behind the group, approaching the outhouse with a grim face, but a touch of curiosity. "The mines don't look to see common activity," he mutters to himself just loud enough for the closest of the party to hear, "so I wonder who put an outhouse way out here. Ramshackle as this, somehow I doubt it dates back to the digging of this mine." He gingerly opens the outhouse door to take a quick glance inside,but then hustles to catch back up to the others. He holds a hand out for the other coin from Sunshine, speaking, "I'll take up the rear, then."

As Galthir opens the door to the outhouse, a light emanating from beneath the stool immediately catches his eyes. His breath catches momentarily, and in the silence he hears a very low rumbling.

On seeing the unexpected light, Galthir calls loudly to his companions, "Err, Rook, Deruvid, hold up. There's something in here..." He steps inside the outhouse, leaving the door hanging open and examines the bench more closely, trying to ascertain the source of the orange glow by peering into the gap itself.

"Eh?"
Deruvid turns around and takes a step back towards Galthir.
"Did they forget to flush?"

Galthir steps into the outhouse, curiouser and curiouser about the dull orange glow. As he peers into the bench-hole, he sees buried a small wooden barrel about 4 feet down. Unusually clean for the waste receptacle of an outhouse, inside is a lit torch, burning for who knows how long.

Suddenly, the low rumbling becomes a great tremor localized beneath the Ranger's feet.

From beneath the ground erupts a massive lavender coil, with a three-piece beak at its fore, gaping open into a massive maw. As the beast — the Purple Worm — emerges from the surface, the outhouse explodes in lumber and shrapnel.

Preoccupied with staring into the bench of an outhouse, Galthir fails to heed the rumbling beneath his feet, right up until the moment the ground bursts beneath him. As the soil turns, he throws himself towards the door of the outhouse.

As the dust and smoke from the explosion clear; the forward shaft of a great Purple Worm stretches 30 feet into the air.

Rubble and shrapnel litter the area, in some places more dense than others.

Galthir is nowhere to be seen, the doomed Horde-Breaker having seen himself broken by a colossus. A dark end for the introverted Ranger.

A torch, still burning, sits on the ground about 15 feet from where it once was.