D&D Campaign Journal

Session 71: Into the Creeping Dark

Characters Present: Umal, Wendaline, Felorn, Dahni, Mario, Grimdur

Recap

The party has been sent by Den Matron Dierta Thelyss (Umal’s grandmother) to find a mysterious apothecary in Roshona’s Black Market to investigate the toxin afflicting Umal’s father.

Narrative Summary

###The Attack at the Thelyss Estate

As Wendaline and Umal returned to the Thelyss Estate in the rain-soaked darkness, passing through the anti-magic barrier that protected the mage house, they were suddenly confronted by Kaverick — an elderly drow mage guard and war veteran. His eyes went wide with panic as he pointed his spear at Umal.

“It’s her! Traitor! Don’t let her get away!” he screamed, thrusting his spear forward. The weapon pierced Umal’s defenses before other guards rushed to restrain Kaverick. “Before she disappears again!” he shouted, struggling against his fellow guards.

Dierta Thelyss, the Den Matron herself, appeared and immediately took control. She used time magic to halt the bleeding, her expression growing grim as she looked into Kaverick’s eyes. What she saw there was unmistakable: typhros — a condition affecting those who have been reborn too many times through consecution, where past lives bleed into the present, causing confusion and madness.

“Take this man to the dungeons,” she commanded flatly, all emotion draining from her voice.

The Truth of Typhros

Inside the estate’s salon, Dierta explained the grim reality. Kaverick had mistaken Umal for someone from his past life — Jourrael Caedogeist, also known as the Inevitable End, a famous assassin and traitor to the Dynasty from long ago. The typhros had made him unable to distinguish past from present.

“Unfortunately, Kaverick will be executed outside of the beacon range,” Dierta stated matter-of-factly. “Those with typhros cannot continue their life cycles — it corrupts the lifelines.”

When asked if there was no cure, no way to let him live out his natural life, Dierta was clear: with all that he knows, he had become a liability. Typhros must be hidden from the Bright Queen at all costs.

The party learned that Jourrael Caedogeist’s remains were supposedly being transported by the Myriad — specifically by Sharkbait, the mafioso the party had crossed before. They had previously recovered her left hand sealed in a crystal and given it to Lumitherion, an ancient protector in the Xhorhasian wastes.

The Mission: Hunt the Creeping Death

Turning to the matter at hand, the party reported their findings. Jamedi Cosko, the apothecary they’d found in the Black Market, had examined a blood sample from Umal’s father and identified the toxin as the Creeping Death — a neurotoxin that evaporates blood cells until none remain. The creature is the stuff of legends; few know anything about it, likely because not many have survived an encounter.

Jamedi could create an antidote, but he needed the creature’s poison gland — intact.

Dierta provided what limited information she could gather and supplies for the journey: healing potions and a map marking two entrances to the Underdark. One they’d used before — the tunnels beneath Roshona itself. The other was in the mountain range just outside the city, which would take them deeper, faster, but required traveling through dangerous territory.

The party chose the mountain entrance, partly because Grimdur had mentioned that Lucian’s hideout — the Shades’ base — was somewhere in those mountains. Lucian, the man who had betrayed and stabbed Grimdur, who had killed Grimdur’s friend James. The possibility of settling that score hung in the air, though the primary mission remained clear.

“I’ll expect you back in the morning first thing,” Dierta said. “Be careful. All the supplies you lose will be replenished to our abilities. Life, however, is your own.”

Drinks and Discussions

That night at the Crooked Tankard, the party gathered to process the day’s events and steel themselves for what lay ahead. Over drinks, they discussed Marquet — Dahni’s homeland in the jungles outside the city of Dul’rusar — and how the young barbarian had somehow survived the journey all the way to Palebank Fylactory.

Wendaline, Mario, and Felorn were soon joined by the others. Grimdur arrived in surprisingly good humor, having made contact with Moradin, the Allhammer — a deeply spiritual experience that left him feeling supported, though he made it clear that communing with a god was not exactly a dialogue.

They discussed the plan: return to the estate in the morning, then venture into the Underdark through the mountain entrance. There was brief talk of whether they’d encounter Lucian’s hideout, but they decided not to actively seek it out — stirring up trouble with the Shades would only complicate the primary mission.

The conversation turned darker when they noticed Grimdur’s hand — the finger that had been lost was slowly flaking, almost like dead skin peeling away. When asked if he’d spoken to Moradin about it, Grimdur simply said the god had given him what he needed to know.

Into the Ghostlands

Morning came, and the party assembled at the Thelyss Estate. Using disguises and magic, they made themselves presentable enough to enter the Firmament — the high district where the mage houses resided. Dierta gave them additional healing potions and confirmed their choice of entrance.

“This will mean you skip the underground parts of Roshona and go directly into unknown territory,” she warned. “The Underdark is treacherous. The first part is a cavernous, spiraling labyrinth. No real maps exist to guide you.”

She did provide one crucial piece of information: if they found a myconid colony (mushroom people living under a sovereign in a hive-mind arrangement), they might be able to get directions to the Creeping Death’s lair. The myconids were generally neutral and could be reasoned with, but were dangerous if provoked.

The party left Roshona through the city gates, stepping into the Ghostlands — the ruins surrounding the capital. Ancient gothic architecture lay in ruins: collapsed houses, toppled temples, stone overtaken by time and desolation. Ghostly blue shimmers drifted through the ruins — unquiet spirits that wandered these lands.

The atmosphere was oppressive. The ever-present gloomy darkness of Xhorhas pressed down on them, though the sky showed hints of maroon-grey as they moved north toward the mountains. Birds of prey circled overhead, and occasional carcasses dotted the landscape. As they entered the forested foothills, Dahni was visibly relieved to see trees again, hugging the first substantial tree they encountered.

Into the Mountain

Wendaline, using her ranger skills and knowledge of the Underdark, guided them through the safest paths until they reached the cave entrance — a half-moon opening carved into the mountainside where two massive stone slabs had been pushed aside by tectonic forces.

The tunnel descended into darkness. The tunnels became a maze. Multiple passages branched off in different directions, spiraling deeper into the mountain’s heart. Grimdur had the clever idea to mark their way: carving a “1” at the first intersection, “2” at the next, and so on, so they could trace their steps back if needed.

The Mushroom Tunnel

As they descended, the tunnels grew increasingly difficult to navigate. Strange bioluminescent mushrooms began appearing on the walls, growing thicker and more abundant. Some released clouds of spores when disturbed — Mario and Wendaline both got hit by poison spores but managed to resist the worst effects.

The mushrooms eventually became so dense that they blocked the entire passage — a sea of caps and stalks that couldn’t be walked through without triggering them.

Grimdur had an idea. Using his Fabricate spell, he pulled every mushroom within 60 feet toward himself, compressing them all into a single giant mushroom that completely cleared the passage ahead (while blocking the passage behind). It was creative, effective, and left the party free to continue deeper.

###The Bridge of Stalactites

The tunnel eventually opened into a massive cavern — an abyss so deep they couldn’t see the bottom. Stalactites and stalagmites filled the space like teeth, and a natural stone bridge wound across the chasm, twisting and curving precariously above the darkness below.

The air was thick and smelled of rotten eggs — likely volcanic gases from deep below. Mario cast Daylight to illuminate their path, revealing just how treacherous the bridge truly was: only five feet wide, winding upward and then downward like a serpent’s back, with no railings and infinity waiting below.

They proceeded single-file, weapons ready.

Assault of the Cloakers

Felorn spotted movement first — something large falling from the upper reaches of the cavern, spreading wings mid-dive and flying toward them with a shrieking cry. Then another appeared from behind. And another.

Cloakers — flying manta ray-like creatures with sharp teeth, long tails, and most disturbingly, the ability to engulf their prey by wrapping around them like living blankets, blinding and suffocating them.

The battle was chaotic and terrifying. On a narrow bridge with a bottomless drop on either side, the party fought for their lives:

The turning point came when they realized the cloakers were more vulnerable when flying than when wrapped around someone. “Shoot the flyers!” became the battle cry. Wendaline and Felorn focused their attacks on the airborne threats while the melee fighters dealt with the grappled ones.

After a brutal fight that saw multiple party members seriously injured, they finally killed the last cloaker. Felorn wanted to skin one, but the others urged him onward — they needed to keep moving.

The Temple Gate

Battered and exhausted, the party continued deeper into the Underdark. The narrow tunnel gradually opened up again, and the incline shifted. After healing their wounds and catching their breath, they pressed on, following the winding passages ever downward.

Eventually, they saw it: an entrance carved into the stone, clearly artificial, clearly ancient. A temple gate covered in drawings and bladed imagery. Bioluminescent light and motion filled the area beyond. Sounds echoed from distant places — the Underdark stretched vast and incomprehensible before them.

They stepped through into a gigantic cavern — a massive chasm crossed by multiple bridges and pathways leading in different directions. On the first platform they encountered, visible in the dim fungal light, stood a great statue.

They had reached something significant. Something old. And somewhere in these depths, the Creeping Death waited.

Key Discoveries & Decisions

Open Threads

Notable Quotes

“Take this man to the dungeons.” — Dierta Thelyss, after discovering Kaverick’s typhros

“It’s not a conversation. You get spoken to. It’s not a dialogue.” — Grimdur, explaining communion with Moradin

“Shoot the flyers!” — Wendaline, discovering the cloakers’ vulnerability

“How do you want to do this?” — The DM, after Felorn landed the killing blow

Session 72: The Temple of Whispers →