| Session Date | June 10, 2023 |
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| Base XP Gained | Carry Over |
| Player Notes | ZZ's Notes |
Back once more in the Dwarf city, the party awoke in comfort and safety. Their first order of business was reorganizing their residence in light of all the turnover in occupants. It was not long after a hearty breakfast that their first visitor of the day called. Nali was pleased to see them and expressed his sincere appreciation for the party’s success against the Ice Wizard. He was even more pleased when he learned further details of what had happened. Already, the weather on the surface was improving dramatically, to which Hans noted that the Dwarves and others should beware of flooding from rapidly melting ice and snow. Nali was still concerned with possible famine in Manston, since all trade with them remained closed. For their part, the Dwarves were getting some additional food from their Elven allies to the east and they would weather this just fine. Manston, of course, was a different story. Hans also offered the use of his ship to link Far Andor to the Elves; Nali noted this was rare, though not unprecedented. With regards to the Giant King, things were quiet, though Nali lamented his inability to gather good intelligence. The Dwarf King’s policy remained unchanged – the Kingdom was not at war with the Giant King, nor were they friendly or willing to trade with them while Manston remained occupied. The Dwarf king continued to think as a Dwarf, in terms of decades and centuries, not months and years. Hans pointed out the risks in such thinking, and Nali clearly agreed with him. For his part, the Giant King seemed content with his conquered territory and was (unsuccessfully) trying to get trade (and taxes) flowing again. To a question on the Wellidar (formerly Wellington and now capital of the Kingdom of Indis), Nali had some sketchy intel that they were talking to one another, but seemed to be butting heads to some degree, likely given each controlled one end of the Blueflood. Before departing, Nali did mention in passing that he’d spoken to his father Fror (lord of the city) about special recognition for the party’s success but had been denied.
Shortly after Nali left, the party was visited by the six Dwarven soldiers who’d served them in Manston. They were boisterous and made themselves at home in the party’s residence as only Dwarves can do. They had little enough to report, mainly that they found their mundane duties to be exceptionally boring and that they missed their surface adventures. They made it quite clear they’d enjoy being detailed to work for the party again. The party “knew people,” maybe they could make it happen.
Some time after the Dwarves departed to go do whatever it was they should have been doing, the party was visited by Floi, Nali’s younger brother. He remained in the bad graces of his father (Dwarven lords have long memories, after all). He was genuinely excited to see the party and, like the previous visitors, was only to happy to presume on their hospitality. But he had come on business and finally got to it. He’d acquired a treasure map purporting to show the location of the lost tomb of Zil-Zigilir, the Twice Crowned. This Dwarf lived over 2000 years ago, before the rise of the current Dwarf Kingdom. He had a seedy reputation, the title “twice crowned” referring to the fact his first kingdom collapsed for a long period before he refounded a second one. The party inquired at the map’s provenance and he admitted he’d bought it from a lesser cleric of Vergodain. Using it, he claimed to have located where it lay. However, there was a big problem in that the passage was blocked by an immense block of stone along the main thoroughfare to the Dwarven city’s necropolis. He could hardly chisel it open in a semi-public place, and assumed the party possessed the power to slip past the barrier with less mess. Floi was quite excited by the prospect of getting into the tomb as it was said to be filled with huge treasures there for the taking. Floi did admit that there might be some trouble with Dwarves with roots predating the current kingdom (like ZZ), but it was so old he doubted there’s be much trouble if they kept things quiet. He concluded with asking the party to at least come and take a look.
Being rested and in good shape, the party decided to take a look that day. Led by Floi, they descended from the First Deep (where they dwelt) down through the Second and to the Third Deep. Floi led them quickly into a very wide but quiet tunel sloping even further downwards, the road to the Necropolis, passing a few parties and lone Dwarves coming back up from whatever business took them to the graveyard for the entire city. Some ways down, when no lights were in sight in either direction, Floi pointed to a section of wall and said this as it. The wall appeared ordinary to casual observation, but on closer inspection ZZ could sense slight differences in it, so subtle as to be invisible unless one were to examine this particular bit of wall in all of the mile long tunnel. It was not a secret door, but a massive block placed here by some unknown (but impressive) feat of engineering. Neither detect magic nor detection of metals and minerals revealed anything, and it was impossible to determine the thickness of the block. So, Sirius cast passwall and the party discovered that the block was just about 10 feet thick with an opening beyond.
Beyond the block the party found a passageway about 20’ wide running in a straight line to the south. The construction was Dwarven, albeit somewhat less fine than most of the city. The path was slightly dusty. Floi was beside himself with triumph, though he was quick to admit that his map was now useless as it only said how to find the place, not what to expect. After Sirius dispelled the passwall, the party proceeded, going about a quarter mile in a straight line until they came to a great double door of obsidian with two interlocking crowns carved into it. Floi whispered in awe that this was the symbol of Zir-Zigilir, the Twice Crowned. The door was flanked by two immense statues seemingly made of bronze.
Mordecai now cast detect traps and found the doors to be magically trapped in some fashion. ZZ was able to dispel this and the party prepared themselves with a variety of preparatory spells. With enhanced strength, Hans bashed open the door. When he did so, the two bronze statues animated and attacked. After a few hits on them it became clear they were in fact iron golems painted in bronze. The party scrambled to shift to weapons and spells that could affect these things (a real issue with these). Mordecai took a terrible blow from one, as did Hans. Poison gas nearly did in Floi, but Mordecai cast neutralize poison to save him. But the real action was that HelgaVinka finally got to employ her Rod of Smiting against her most hated foe! The first one she hit was blasted into iron fragments and she took down the second quite handily, as well.
Beyond the obsidian doors was an antechamber of white marble with white stone columns to the ceiling. All was decorated with the twin crown symbol. In the dust, however, were some footprints, not recent perhaps but then again not ancient either. Here, Burt cast invisibility 10’ radius on all of the party. A few steps up led to another door and another chamber beyond that, this one of white stone with tall black columns. A double door in front of the party depicted the twinned crowns while side doors had polearms carved on them. This entire room had scorch marks throughout as well as several burned (Dwarf) skeletons.
The party tried the east door first, finding a room with 10 mummified Dwarves. The clerics instantly sensed a strong evil throughout this place, as well as a sudden “distance” to their own deities. This feeling persisted as the party returned to the scorched rom and proceeded to open the door to the west…