Gricks, Cloakers, and Puddings (11th of Bearguard, Rose: 47)

Having dispatched the Gricks, the party did a little more exploring of the mine.

Gorbash told the party of what he saw with the ghostly apparitions leading away from this segment of the mine.

(DM's note: Gorbash also made a successful save against being aged by the ghost having been touched by it before the game started, an oversight that I didn't run in the last session).

Exploring that section of the mine more, the party found about six dwarven miners, their bodies fairly well preserved in this airless environment, crammed into a little nook - an unfinished area of the mine. The corpses were not turned to stone; they were apparently hiding, perhaps suffocated. They pulled out the stiff corpses and laid them out, and Tamroohk performed a Dwarven last rite ritual, dashing holy water of Berronar Truesilver on their heads; it streaked into silver. During that hour, the party rested, and proceeded to the next archway in this plane of the mine which was labeled Alexandrite.

Gorbash immediately triggered a spear trap: a pressured plate on the floor caused an array of spears to jet out of the ceiling! Wounded, the party took some time to help Gorbash back on his feet. The trap was reset when Tolman recognized that a nearby chain anchored to the floor and ceiling seemed to retract the spears and re-arm the plate.

Pressing on to the right-most cavern, the party encountered statues of three dwarven miners - apparently turned to stone, their faces in shock, terror, and fear. The pseuodragon found a bag that was tucked away in a corner containing 4 large raw (uncut) diamonds. With Tolman's help, the pseudodragon was able to pull on the pack and bring it to Tolman's Mage Hand.

Exploring more, the party found more caverns that dead-ended, and, another spear trap (that Gorbash walked right into again). But ... as Tamroohk descended some dark stairs cut into the cavern floor, using only her dark vision, she encountered a dead end ... that wasn't dead at all! The ceiling itself seemed to have eyes and moved abruptly. It was large, had wings like a manta ray with a span of almost 10 feet, and hook-like claws that gripped the ceiling with a mouth of teeth in its underbelly. The Cloaker revealed itself and attacked the dwarf!

Meanwhile, the party began to respond only to find a second cloaker right above the head of Gorbash in the same wing of the cavern! Luckily, the Cloaker rolled poorly and Gorbash didn't get his head eaten in a surprise attack, but the battle was on! The party then noticed how poorly positioned they were to take on these threats in such dark, narrow corridors ...

But while all this was happening, Ma'yah noticed that a black ooze was descending from the ceiling near her. The ooze took form on the floor, spawning a pseudopod of an arm with claw-like appendages that grasped the floor and wall for movement; more appendages appeared and, at times, the hideous thing had five or six arms moving it along the floor and walls - the arms appearing almost like dwarven-sized arms. The ooze attacked Ma'yah and she took a significant amount of damage - down to 1 HP! - and she ran for her life back to the chamber with the dwarven statues to recouperate.

Meanwhile, a pitched battle was going on with the dwarves and halfling combating the two Cloakers. There was a lot of damage dealt to all. Elan, Llew, and Siegride provided missile weapon, healing, and magical support for battling the Cloakers and Ooze; it was Llew's shrewed taunting that was able to force the Ooze to run away and for Siegride to take an attack of opportunity against it!

Just then, as the Ooze departed - slithering into a hole - on the ceiling, another row of eyes appeared. A Cloaker, just near the archway, and it had its beady eyes on Ma'yah! Ma'yah, fearing for her life, cast Mirror Image, and three half-naked Ma'yah's appeared, looking over each other from multiple angles. She was going to try and confuse the Cloaker, for, at just 1 HP, it's the only card she had to play!

Suddenly, Tolman rushed forward with his thievy-speed and engaged the third Cloaker. Both took significant damage and at one point the Cloaker was able to attach to Tolman (as to eat him and perform damage transfer - it's all part of their special abilities), but Llew was able to psychically-scare the thing away and it retreated for its life, ditching Tolman.

Soon, Gorbash and Tamroohk had dispatched the last of the Cloakers.

Safe, the party attended to wounds and healing, then, explored the treasure trove amassed by the Cloaker at the end of the cave. Piles of Silver and Gold Dwarven Dubloons, little pieces of art, and some ointment. (Somebody kept a record of this - it was randomly generated).

Further exploration noted more empty sections of mine. We left off around mid-evening on the 11th of Bearguard, Rose: 47! A long rest awaits, and then - more exploring!

R