Introduction

Rhen, the tiefling rogue, and Okra, the half-orc paladin, met in an inn and bonded over their shared experience of being misunderstood by common folk. Rhen confided that she was bound for the dungeon, hoping to rescue her Nan, whose last known path had mysteriously led there. Okra deemed this a worthy cause for a paladin, and the two left the inn the next morning, setting out together.

On the road, the pair encountered Katsu, a high elf monk, outside a nearby village. After introductions, Katsu explained that his town had recently been attacked by unnatural creatures, and he believed the rumored dungeon might be the source. Driven by a desire to protect his family, Katsu joined the party.

The group later met Lia, a wood elf druid, in the forest. Drawn by rumors of the power and strength hidden within the dungeon, she was eager to join as well, reasoning that there was safety in numbers.

At the base of the mountain, the party spotted a dwarf preparing to make the ascent. He carried the gear of an adventurer, but wore the trappings of a well-rounded musician. This was Felicks, the dwarven bard. Eager for company, though mysterious in his own motivations, he joined the group.

After a brief climb, they encountered another dwarf, though one quite different from Felicks. Books, charts, and scrolls peeked from his backpack. Hansel, a dwarven wizard known as Hans to his friends, was making calculations to continue the ascent to what he called a library when the party found him. After some misunderstandings and cultural barriers were worked through, they agreed to travel together.

And so they climbed the mountain until they reached a plateau. There, set into the stone, was a massive cave entrance. Beside it lay an impossibly large dead man. The group discovered his journal, and Felicks deciphered the ancient language within. The writing suggested the man was likely a titan, one of the first living beings in the world, and possibly a guard, though whether he had been guarding against something entering or escaping remained unclear. The journal also hinted that there might be at least one other entrance to the dungeon, perhaps guarded by the titan's friend.

Deciding the cave was likely the entrance to the dungeon, or library, the group carefully descended into the depths and came upon a large stone-built chamber. It had two doors, but after some testing, one seemed barred from the other side. They opened the other door and found only blackness beyond its threshold. Anything that passed into it did not come back out. Finally, after a leap of faith, one by one, they disappeared into the dark.

On the other side, they found themselves in a room much like the one they had left. But when they turned back, there was no sign of the door they had passed through. Only stone.

The group soon encountered a band of orcs, at least one of whom seemed gravely ill. The orcs were defeated and despairing, exhausted by endless killing and death. They were waiting to die. Only after some persuasion did they speak of their leader, Orghar, whom they now despised. They had followed him to this place after being promised the power to defeat their enemies. Alongside kobolds and troglodytes, they had formed an unlikely alliance under the guidance of a "rat man", who claimed the dungeon would be their salvation. Orghar believed him, until the rat man disappeared. Then strange monsters began to appear and slaughter everyone. The alliance collapsed, war broke out, and every clan was left to fend for itself.

Important Information:

• Orghar, the orc leader who led a band of orcs to the dungeon. It seems that at least some orcs regretted their choices of following him, especially once the monsters started to appear and wreck havoc and kill the orcs.
• "Rat Man", mysterious alliance leader who convinced the leaders of the orcs, kobolds, and troglodytes to follow him to the dungeon. Once he disappeared, it seems the monsters began to appear, and the alliance failed, with the orcs going to war against the kobolds and troglodytes.

When Rhen asked whether they had seen her Nan, the orcs did not know. However, they pointed the group toward a room where they had stored the bodies of those who had died nearby.

Feeling some pity for the orcs, the party tried to cheer them up with a performance. Rhen sang songs of her people, accompanied and translated by Felicks. For a brief moment, it seemed to help. Then one of the orcs began coughing uncontrollably and suddenly died. The remaining orcs begged the party to stop and leave them to die in their own way. All but Hansel agreed, and Felicks helped drag Hans away, sparing the distraught orcs from his persistent questioning.

The party moved to the room the orcs had indicated. Inside, Rhen and Lia discovered several bodies: kobolds, troglodytes, and elves. They also found what appeared to be a secret door. Given the burn marks on the bodies near it, the door was likely trapped, but the party is still uncertain.

Around that time, Hans opened an adjacent door. Inside were two sacks: one spoiled and covered in fungus, the other still closed. The party examined the fungus and determined it might serve as a contact or ingestible poison, with possible medicinal properties if studied further. Lia opened the other bag and was met with a burst of black spores to the face. She choked and coughed, taking minor damage, but also discovered two orcish potions hidden behind the sack. Okra identified them as potions of vitality.

Loot:

• 2 Potions of Vitality
• Potent fungus that could be used to create poison

The party then entered the next room to the north and decided to close the door behind them. There they found enough dried goods to provide each member with 5 rations. Further in, they found pickaxes and shovels, which many of them added to their packs.

Loot:

• 5 rations per person
• Cook's utensils
• Optional: 1 pickaxe per person
• Optional: 1 shovel per person

The group cautiously continued down the twisting hallway to the east and discovered a crossbow mounted to the wall, apparently as part of a trap. Rhen attempted to take it, triggering the mechanism. The bolt struck her for minor damage, but she came away victorious with a usable crossbow.

Loot:

• Crossbow

The party examined the door to the south and confirmed their suspicions. A piece of wire had been nailed to the door and traced back to the crossbow at the end of the hall. They attempted to unlock the door, but it proved difficult. After several tries, they finally opened it and entered what was clearly a tool storage room or workshop.

Loot:

• Sharpening stone, well used, 1 good use remaining
• Woodcarver's tools
• Carpenter's tools

Inside, the party discovered a secret door to the west. When opened, it led back into the room with the sacks. Then they heard a terrible noise through the wall to the east. They tried to remain silent, but whatever made the sound may have detected them. After a short time, the noise faded, as if the thing had moved away.

The party retraced their steps, passing the winding corridor, the dried goods, the sack room, and finally returning to the room where they had met the orcs. There, they discovered the orcs had been killed by a massive swarm of rats.

Loot:

• Healers kit, 5 uses remaining
• Silvered battleaxe

What might have happened if the party had not closed the door to the room where they found the dried goods? Perhaps it is best not to ponder such things.

Simple AI generated video of the adventure so far

Session Notes

After the party finished searching the orc camp, they thought they saw a shadow approaching through the darkness. For one tense moment, weapons rose and breath caught.

It was only a trick of the dark.

A7. Former Sleeping Quarters

The party pressed deeper into the dungeon and entered what had once been sleeping quarters. Destroyed straw mats lay scattered across the floor, and old blood splattered the stone in dark, ugly stains.

A brief breath of fresher air drew attention to a hidden door. After some searching, the party found it, though it appeared to be one-way. It could open into the room, but not from the room outward.

Then the dungeon trembled.

A small earthquake rolled through the chamber, knocking Rhen to the ground. Fortune, however, favored her fall. From her new vantage point, she spotted two pearls hidden among the debris.

Loot:

• 2 pearls, valued at 200gp

A8. The Orc Corpse

The party continued onward into a room where an orc skeleton lay sprawled across the floor. A trail of blood led from the corpse toward the northern doorway.

Searching the remains, the party discovered a modest cut diamond tucked away in the orc's pockets.

Loot:

• 1 diamond, valued at 50gp

A9. Death from Above

Following the blood trail, the party moved into the next room.

Lia was the first to discover that something was waiting.

A shape dropped from the darkness above the doorway. Magical darkness swallowed her vision, and in the black she felt something swoop down and strike from above.

When the darkness faded, the attacker was revealed: a fiendish darkmantle, a living nightmare of leathery wings, grasping tentacles, and too many teeth. Unfortunately for the creature, it had chosen its meal poorly.

The party tore into it. The final blow came from Katsu, who leaped up, grappled the thing, and punched its literal lights out.

As the creature fell, Lia noticed a small rat sitting in the northern doorway, watching the fight with unsettling stillness. A moment later, it scurried away.

A10. The Rat Swarm

As the party entered the next room, they heard a tremendous sound: hundreds, perhaps thousands, of tiny nails scratching against stone.

The party had only moments to discuss what to do before a massive swarm of rats flooded into the room like a tidal wave of fur, claws, and teeth.

Soon they were covered in biting rats, fighting them off by the dozen. Rhen swept several up in a cloth and bashed them against the wall, while Okra chopped, Katsu kicked, and Lia skewered. Felicks delivered the final blow with his warhammer, scattering what remained of the swarm.

After the frantic violence ended, the party took a quick breather and tried to recover from the traumatic encounter.

A11. Bones in the Hall

The party then entered a long, winding hallway. Just outside the doorway, they found a skeleton that did not appear to be orcish.

Lia detected magic on the skeletal corpse lying in the hall. After searching the remains, the party discovered a silvered masterwork dagger, though it badly needed sharpening.

Then Felicks heard a scream from somewhere to the north. The dungeon's stone walls twisted the sound, making it impossible to tell exactly where it had come from.

With paths leading west, south, and toward two doors to the north, the party first scouted south. Rhen and Katsu unlocked the reinforced door leading into the next room.

Loot:

• 1 masterwork +1 dagger, silvered

A20. Orghar's Quarters

The party entered what they discovered to be the personal quarters of Orghar, the orc chieftain. Though he had not been here for some time, the room still held traces of its former occupant.

Katsu searched the table and found a few personal items. Lia discovered a small leather pouch hidden inside one of the bed legs, containing powdered silver.

As Felicks stood guard and the rest of the party investigated the room, they received just enough warning to avoid being fully consumed by a massive swarm of centipedes. The creatures came pouring down the hallway at frightening speed.

The party made quick work of the nuisance.

Afterward, Okra discovered two secret doors. One led south and could be opened. The other led west, but would not open from this side.

Loot:

• Kobold skull
• Back scratcher made of bone with the words "To Orghar" on it
• Powdered silver, worth about 50gp

A21. The Secret Room

The party pushed open the southern secret door and found a room filled with dusty tables and chairs.

Lia discovered ruby dust on one of the tables and carefully collected it into a cloth provided by Rhen.

The room also contained a door to the east. Upon investigation, the party saw that it was trapped. Rhen did her best to disarm it, but when the door opened, the trap still triggered. A blade snapped out and gave her a small cut.

Beyond the door was a long room that had collapsed, perhaps during the recent earthquake. Frustrated that the room led nowhere after all that effort, Rhen selected a large rock and put it in her pack.

Lia shouted "Hello" to see if it would echo.

It did.

The sound carried throughout the dungeon.

Then the party noticed suspended dust shifting in the air, disturbed by faint currents. Following the movement, they found another secret door. It was the same one-way mantrap door that led back to the room with the grass mats, though they chose not to enter through it.

Loot:

• Ruby dust worth 50gp
• Large rock selected in anger

A19. The Stinking Hallway

With no obvious way forward, the party backtracked to the hallway with the skeleton, then headed west and north.

The smell grew steadily worse until, at the end of the hall, they found a latrine.

Katsu wanted to try to close the opening, but there was not enough stone available to do so. Hearing this, Rhen tried to help by tossing her angry rock down the latrine, where it made the kind of splat that surprised no one.

Rhen then decided to test the latrine personally, much to the discomfort of everyone else, who were now far more familiar with her than they had been before.

Lia and Felicks slipped on the foul, slick floor and were covered in bodily fluids until Felicks used his magic to clean them both.

Having reached another dead end, the party turned back and decided to try one of the northern doors in the hallway.

Loot Lost:

• 1 angry rock

A12. Hallway with Four Doors

The party returned down the hallway and headed east, finding themselves looking north into a hall with four doors, two on each side.

With Felicks standing guard near the back, the rest of the party crept forward butt-to-butt, ready for whatever might greet them.

The first room on the left reeked of rat urine. It was obvious this had been the nesting ground of the rat swarm they had previously faced.

Lia and Okra braved the rat funk and discovered a 5-foot chain and a soiled small leather pouch. Katsu cleaned the pouch with his own magical tricks. Inside, the party found fine gold dust.

Loot:

• 5' chain weighing 15 lbs.
• Fine gold dust worth 25gp

A14. Quarters

The party crossed the hall into another room and found it ransacked, with broken furniture scattered throughout.

Under one of the beds, they discovered a small tin box and a brown leather satchel. Inside the tin box were two healing potions. Inside the satchel was a poisoner's kit.

Loot:

• 2 potions of healing
• Poisoner's kit

The party decided to return to Orghar's quarters for a long rest, believing it to be a defensible position with a strong, locked door.

After closing and locking the door, Felicks used his sharpening stone to restore the silvered masterwork dagger. Lia then gave the dagger to Rhen.

Katsu watched the secret door that opened into the room, and the party took their first long rest since entering the dungeon only eight hours earlier.

Where had that scream come from?

Who was screaming?

And more importantly, why?

Perhaps the party will soon find out...

AI video of some of the events in this session

Session Notes Video

Before the party took a long rest, Felicks, still reflecting on a slight dispute with Hansel, shaved his beard with the newly found silver dagger, braided the hair, and gave it to Hansel. Felicks told Hansel that words had meaning. Hansel was puzzled and unsure how to react, but he accepted the woven hair, placed it in a cloth bag, and decided to use it as a pillow for the evening.

The party took a well-deserved long rest, until a cough broke the darkness. Lia coughed up a single speck of blackness, which settled on her lips. Only Katsu was awake to hear it. He glanced over briefly, though his eyes remained mostly fixed on the secret door that opened into the room from places unknown.

The hidden seam of the western secret door suddenly cracked open. Pale gray, rootlike tendrils lashed out of the dark, striking Lia across the chest, waist, and mouth. She tried to breathe in, but the tendrils tightened before she could make a sound.

Katsu jumped to his feet and leapt toward Lia, striking and pulling at the tendrils until one fell to the ground. Lia was then forcefully yanked sideways through the seams of the secret door, which slammed shut behind her. The party rose frantically as Katsu explained what had happened. They searched for a way to open the door, but had no luck. The severed tendril wriggled near Hansel’s feet, much to his dismay, until Rhen stabbed it with her blade and it stopped moving. She examined it and found that it smelled like the spores Lia had been exposed to the previous day in the sack room. She secretly tried to take a small piece of the tendril, unsure if it might help them find Lia. Hansel noticed her sleight of hand, but said nothing. Instead, he quietly offered her a small jar to securely keep the tendril piece in.

The party only knew Lia had been taken east, a direction they had not yet explored. Anxious to find their lost companion, the group rushed to the locked door, only to hear someone else picking the lock from the other side. With weapons raised and ready, Katsu unlocked the door and violently pulled it open, prepared for whatever stood behind it.

In front of them stood a tall, iridescent, copper-colored Dragonborn humanoid. She held a torch in one hand and a piece of wire in the other. She was surprised to see the party, but after quick introductions, she called herself Tsarina. She explained that she was looking for a grimoire, and despite the strange first impression, her pragmatism won out and she agreed to join them. Felicks cut the introductions short and led the charge down the hall into the eastern room of the unexplored hallway, searching for any way to move farther east through this terrible place.

Loot:

• A small piece of the tendril that attacked Lia, stored in a jar.

A15. Lair of the Fiendish Darkmantles

The party darted into the eastern room, desperately searching for a passage or secret door that might lead them to Lia. Above them, attached to the ceiling, were two fiendish darkmantles, flying octopus-like creatures with tentacles and teeth. Felicks was caught in the conjured magical darkness of one while the party fought to defeat the foes. The party witnessed Tsarina’s magical powers as she launched beams of purple and pink energy, possibly with a trail of glitter, at the darkmantles. After their victory, and after determining the room was a dead end, they rushed across the hall to the next room.

A13. Gnawers

As the party entered this trashed room, the overwhelming stink of rat urine and two to three feet of piled refuse did not stop Felicks, Katsu, and Rhen from pressing inside. Tsarina, Okra, and Hansel remained in the hallway, watching the party’s back.

From within the trash erupted three wolf-sized rats, each with unnatural glowing eyes and rows of teeth. Around the corner, two more fiendish rats approached the hallway where half the party stood. Furious that these monsters stood between them and Lia, the party made short work of them. Disappointed that the room held nothing of value, and even more disappointed that it did not lead them closer to Lia, the party decided there was only one door in this part of the dungeon they had not yet checked: the north-facing door in the hallway with the corpse where they found the silver dagger.

Tsarina roared, stopping the party in their tracks. She demanded to know more about what they were doing, why they were risking their lives for their party member, and why, since meeting them, she had already been startled, attacked by darkmantles, exposed to rat urine and trash, and attacked by massive unnatural rats. The party took a moment to continue the introductions that had been previously interrupted, then agreed to keep searching.

A16. Southern Hallway Room

As the party made their way through this room, they heard rough breathing and screams. Out of the darkness came a charging, blood-covered orc, shouting in Orcish and wielding a battleaxe with terror in his eyes. Okra translated for the party, explaining that he thought they were demons like the ones chasing him. Katsu tried in vain to knock sense into him, but the orc only stared back with wide, terrified eyes and said, “They are coming.”

Felicks healed him as a gesture of peace, snapping him out of his terror just as the beating of wings echoed down the hallway. Emerging from the darkness were two fiendish stirges, large bat-shaped mosquitoes that had apparently been chasing the orc. The party engaged them, and the orc landed one of the final blows.

After catching his breath, the orc told the party he was done with Orghar and was heading back to his camp. The party tried to convince him it was not safe, but he would not listen and began to charge off. Hansel worked with Rhen to give him a waterskin filled with ink and water, pierced with a small hole so he could leave a trail back to his camp. He reluctantly agreed, grabbed the waterskin, and ran south into the darkness.

A17. Middle Hallway Room

The party found this room covered in broken glass and discovered it came from many used potions of healing. Hansel scooped up some pieces of glass, used his mysterious ways to turn them into glowing light sources, and tossed them into the room to the north to see if there was a reaction. Only silence answered.

The party then tried to stealth across the broken glass, but failed. The silence broke beneath the crunching of glass, made worse by Hansel’s comical attempt to cross the room quietly.

A18. Northern Hallway Room

The party discovered this room had two doors, one to the east and one to the west. They heard a familiar sound approaching: the beating of wings. As they tried to determine which direction it came from and what to do about it, two fiendish stirges, large batlike mosquitoes, came through the doors, one from each side. The party fought and killed them.

As they approached the doorways, they heard two wondrous things. From the west came the rush of water, like small waterfalls in the distance. From somewhere else, though they could not tell where, came intermittent humming. It sounded like someone humming a tune, one familiar to Felicks and among Rhen’s most favorite songs.

Hansel made some of the party's weapons glow as a light source, and the party decided to follow the sound of water. Hansel took the lead, cautiously checking for traps down the long corridor to the west. After some time, the corridor turned north, and the party came to a door on the east side of the hallway, the clear source of the falling, rushing water.

A22. Water Pillars

The party entered cautiously and found a massive room with four towering pillars. Each pillar had channels that guided small falls of water down into shallow pools below. Intrigued by the mysterious pillars, the party explored, only for Hansel to be ambushed by a towering ogre wearing well-used bronze armor and wielding a massive club nearly the size of Rhen herself.

The party came to Hansel’s rescue, striking the ogre again and again while the creature either complimented or criticized their chosen methods of attack. After a few rounds, Bragdor, as he would soon introduce himself, told the party he was impressed with how hard they hit and wanted to speak with them. Hansel foolishly tried to attack again, provoking the ogre. Felicks jumped in front of him and tried to calm Bragdor, saying that he too respected being hit hard, and offered to take the blow meant for Hansel.

Bragdor was entertained by the offer, and soon the party found themselves welcomed into what Bragdor called his home, which he proudly named “The Water Room.”

Bragdor spoke of Orghar, what led them here, the "rat man", and the dangers of the dungeon.

Important Information:

• Orghar, the orc leader who led a band of orcs to the dungeon, used to be Bragdor’s friend. That is why Bragdor followed him and the coalition led by the "rat man" here.
• According to Bragdor, Orghar has gone insane. It happened after the monsters appeared, and Orghar is not to be trusted.
• Bragdor suspects the monsters have some level of intelligence. After a few smashings, they no longer seem willing to enter this room.
• The party did not ask Bragdor any additional questions...

Session Notes Video

After taking a long rest in Bragdor's water room, the party asked him what he knew about the dungeon ahead. Bragdor admitted he had never traveled north and did not know what waited in that direction. However, he warned that the next room contained many enemies, though he believed they could be easily defeated. Desperate to find Lia, the party asked Bragdor to join them and help in the coming fight. Then, with little time to waste, they opened the east door and pressed on.

A23. Pillars of Illusion

The party entered the next room expecting many enemies, as Bragdor had warned, but instead found a large bookcase filled with magical books. Suddenly, Rhen's Nan appeared, injured but alive, and collapsed in Rhen's arms. Immediately afterward, a small child wearing burnt clothing ran toward Felicks, asking for help, but soon burst into flames, spreading fire around the room behind the party.

In the chaos, a massive, 6-foot-tall fiendish wolf entered the room and began to attack. Upon being attacked, the wolf disappeared. It was just an illusion. Just as Rhen was about to administer a healing potion to Nan, she disappeared too. Another illusion. Then the fire died down, revealing that it had also been an illusion. To Hansel and Tsarina's immense disappointment, the books and the bookshelf all disappeared as illusions as well.

The party played around with the room for a bit, trying to use it to their advantage, but ultimately determined the room was just a distraction. They decided to move to the adjoining room, which Bragdor called "The Quiet Room."

A24. Pillars of Silence

The party quickly discovered that once they entered this room, they could not speak or hear anything. They were magically silenced. The party found that the room had four places for torches on the columns, but only one torch remained. They tried a combination of adding torches to the empty holders, and when that did not do anything, they attempted to remove the remaining torch.

In doing so, they came face to face with a large violet fungus that used its long tentacles to attack. The party defeated the fungus and gathered its acidic blood for possible use later.

Loot:

• 2 x vials of acid
• 2 x doses of contact poison, requiring alchemy
• A torch with a metal base

DM's note: I wonder what the torch does....

Long Hallways North

The party left the Quiet Room and heard humming coming from the north. They moved silently, and around the corner discovered a small gnome sitting on the floor, staring at a torch and humming a tune. Once he saw the party, he leapt to his feet, overjoyed, and tried to give them a hug.

He said his name was Dneirf Niaga, and that he was their friend and had known them for maybe up to a year, but the party did not know him. This revelation, that the party did not know him, made Dneirf sad. The confusion caused a bit of chaos, during which Dneirf first tried to explain that he was just kidding and did not really know them. However, the party persuaded him to tell a bit more of the truth.

Dneirf revealed that he was hiding the truth for their own protection, and that if he told them the truth, they could die. He also said that Hansel was the one who told him that he could not tell the truth. Dneirf wanted to join and help the party, and an intense debate ensued among the party about whether to take him along. Ultimately, they decided to bring him with them, much to his relief. The party put him up front, where his battle prowess could be utilized and where his actions could also be analyzed.

A25. Pillar Room

This room contained a large pillar in the middle and was full of orc and darkmantle corpses. In the midst of the bodies were fiendish wolves, who attacked as the party entered. Dneirf ran into the fray and was immediately killed by one of the wolves.

Upon his death, he apologized to the party, saying that he could not go with them, but someday soon, he hoped they would trust him. As Dneirf died, he turned into a pile of gray dust. The rest of the party fought and defeated the wolves.

When the party tried to examine and retrieve Dneirf's dust, they could not get it into any container. After a few minutes, the dust faded away into nothingness.

The party had many doors to choose from, so they first tried to go east, presumably in Lia's direction.

Loot:

• 2 x shields
• 25 crossbow bolts
• 10 silver pieces
• Bag of caltrops (20)

A27. Storage Room

The party followed a long hallway to a room that, when opened, released a small amount of standing water at their feet. They discovered an orc, with a crossbow still clenched in his hand, with a darkmantle still attached to his head. A crossbow bolt had been shot through both of them, perhaps indicating a suicide that also took the darkmantle's life.

Upon examining the crossbow, it was determined that the crossbow was magical and had been created by the dwarven blacksmith Dorin Steelforge, who was known to create elven-inspired dwarven weapons.

In the corner, the party saw many shovels and pickaxes thrown into a pile. The party moved them out of the way to reveal a small 6-inch hole that seemed to be melted through the stone. Upon looking into the hole, the party could see a room to the east. Not much could be seen through the hole into the next room, other than that the adjoining room contained the bodies of dead orcs.

Important Information:

• Dorin Steelforge was a dwarven blacksmith obsessed with elvish weapon designs. He frequently traveled between dwarvish and elven cities, testing his new weapon designs. He disappeared without a trace 1-2 years ago, and it was thought he may have been killed by bandits or orcs, although his body was never found.

Loot:

• Crossbow, Light +1

A28. Whimper in the Darkness

The party then went west and found a door that seemed to be barred. Once the party pressed hard enough, the door gave way and revealed a cowardly orc named Turag, who had barred himself in the room.

The party and the orc made an agreement that if they escorted him past the room with the large pillar and dead orcs, he would give them 1 silver piece and would look at Rhen's locket to see if he had seen her Nan. The orc said he had not seen Rhen's Nan. He then opened the southwest door and took off running.

Important Information:

• You learned from Turag that Orghar, the orc leader, headed north with most of his orc army.

Loot:

• 1 silver piece

The Friends are the Arguments You Have Along the Way

Felicks and Hansel had their own private meeting where they argued about recent decisions and mutual respect.

A29. Long Hallway and Secret Room at the End

The party found a rusted, reinforced door and picked it open. Inside, they found a long hallway that seemed damp and wet. The party moved east down the hall and discovered a large secret stone door that opened into the next room. The party realized that this was the room connected to the storage room by the small 6-inch hole they had previously discovered.

As the party began to explore the secret room, they heard the rumbling of water. Down the long hallway to the west, a massive wave of water rushed toward them. With little time to spare, they each pushed upon the stone door, trying to close it in time. Just as the door closed, they could feel the blast of energy from the water slam against the stone door they were holding closed.

On the other side of the room, a large gray slime dripped down from the ceiling and began to move toward the party, who were still struggling to hold back the water.

The party gained a second level, just in time for combat...