| Session Date | February 5, 2022 |
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| Base XP Gained | Carry Over |
| Player Notes | ZZ's Notes |
The party rested in the red demonic temple room once again. As before, they're rest was disturbed first by a wraith that surprised the party by floating in through a wall. Fortunately, it was turned by Mordecai before it could do any harm. Later an incorporeal Type I Demon drifted through the room. It clearly saw the party and watched them for a time, but the party did not react and it soon drifted away through a wall.
The party rested the entirety of the next day. During this extended rest, the noise of music and marching from the zombie room to the west suddenly broke into the room as the secret door was opened. The party waited and soon a strange, monkey like head peered in. It seemed rather inoffensive, being about halfling sized, so the party spoke with it. It was Myala it said, who had entered the dungeon to hunt spiders but had become lost and did not know the way out. The party invited it in…only to scare it half to death when thy began screaming at it to wait—it had nearly walked into a glyph of warding! Once in, the party gave it some food and spoke with it. Apparently its tribe came here from time to time as they hated spiders but also loved them (as food). They entered through a secret door below the bridge. Its tribe dwelt in the hills to the west above Castle Gold and the creature said the party would be welcome in its village where they would be safe from the wizard’s birds and hunting wolves. After the party gave it directions to an exit, it thanked them and departed.
Later, another incorporeal demoness (a Type V) passed through the room, staying long enough to leer at Orion for a time, smiling wickedly. There were no further incidents as the party passed an uneventful night.
Next day, they made their way to the pillar of flame room, where they ran into a lone Minotaur. In a parley, the party learned that it was yet another lost creature. After the party gave it, too, directions to escape, it told them they were honorable folk and departed. The party now fed the flame pillar another poisoned potion and asked the face therein how they could open the sliding wall trap if it should close on them. It told them that time would open it, though sadly did not indicate if this meant minutes, days or years.
They now returned to the Demogorgon temple complex, where they discussed various stratagems to clear the temple and seize the large treasure they knew was nearby. There was a lot of talk of having Knar dimension door in with someone, but finally they settled on a more direct approach (remembering what happened to Knar previously when he did something along those lines). Jarrik did put a crowbar to potentially block the sliding wall section.
Moving back into the Demogorgon Temple, after ZZ cast find traps, Burt cast unseen servant which then moved forward to scout the raised portion at the northern end. When he came to the top of the stairs it triggered a glyph of warding. This activity caused a grinding noise to start outside the room (the sliding wall, of course) while from the four empty alcoves in the room huge baboons appeared to attack the party. Above this all, the painting of Demogorgon began to move as if watching the battle. A constant stream of the creatures appeared throughout the battle and, while not individually powerful, there seemed to be an unlimited supply of them! Jarrik tried to control them with his ring of mammal control, but they shrugged off its magic. Knar did web one of the alcoves which blocked at least ¼ of the creatures from appearing. Burt followed this with a wall of fire to block more of them. However, shortly after the battle began, a Death Knight stepped from the dark alcove atop the dais. Its very aura drove off Jarrik, Orion and Bel in terror (for Orion, this was after being hit by a power word stun). This proved to be a problem. However, the remaining members of the party managed to take the fight to the Death Knight, eventually slaying it. It dropped a longsword which the party recovered without touching. The sound of sliding outside the room recommenced as the sliding wall section reopened (apparently).
The party now entered the small area behind the temple and found a sizable treasure including some incense and scrolls. Burt tried reading one scroll and was cursed such that he could not attack serpents (and later learned that serpents liked to attack him). Pleased with their great haul, the party made their way back to the red demon temple to rest once more after their hard fight…