Tuesday, June 19, 2018

The End

My examination indicates that you did account for your food for the first day past the throne room.  However, after the combat, 4 lbs on this day will not be enough food.  You must increase your food cost by 2 lbs. per person, as you are healing now or feeling the effects of a severe battle rush.

 It has been a long day and you must rest to avoid penalties.  You've chosen a small chamber, just thirty feet across, a third of which is covered by a small pond, the far edge against the wall.  Lothar declares the water safe and drinkable.  The room is dank from the water, but it is enclosed and ~ I assume ~ easy to guard, for those who take posts.  You've lost one of your fighters; I direct the new players to familiarize themselves with my guard rules.

The next 'day,' you wake and set about organizing yourselves.  Willa takes a cut of the food (the party should tell me how much), says her goodbyes and begins the return trek.  She explains she is not afraid of the caterpillar you just encountered; so long as she takes cover when it appears, she can protect herself from its spears ... and it is cowardly, anyway.  She hugs Lothar before going and heads off.

The rest of the party continues to delve for a full second day ... and, to move things along, most of a third day as well.  This will cost you 8 lbs. more per person, as you drag along mile after mile.

Late on the third day, however, you see with astonishment that the tunnel ahead of you is lit with a blue light.  This grows quickly, to where it is as bright as day; and then you see the lip of a fall, and part of a chamber beyond.  You move until you reach a ledge, from where you can take it all in.

The chamber is of incomprehensible scale.  A scale that you would compare with standing at the foot of a mountain.  You're uncertain how far beneath the surface you are ... but this must be below sea level.  There is no hill in Rogaland that would contain a chamber this size.

It must be three quarters of a mile high, and two miles across.  You are about three hundred feet above the floor.  This floor is split in two parts: the right two thirds of the chamber is a white-and-blue lake, white because it is frozen solid.  This lake extends to the far ends of the chamber, where the far edge becomes lost to the eye.

The nearer third is bare stone.  It is clearly higher than the lake.  You cannot be sure, but it seems that it overlooks the lake.  There might be a cliff above the lake, but it is obscured because the cliff would be on the edge opposite your point of view.

On the edge, however, is a great sprawling temple, low to the ground, a hundred feet wide and placed on the far side of the bare stone chamber floor. You can see how the pathway you are on descends to the temple ... and you can imagine how the prisoners must have felt at this point, as they came at last to the end of their tortuous journey.

35 comments:

Lothar Svensson said...

Oh. Wow. Of all the times to not be a Bard...

Unknown said...

I updated the logistics sheet as to food only. Before giving Willa anything, we have 49 pounds of food left on us, so we should give her 9 and we need a resupply.

As for this chamber...how large is the ledge we are on now? The lake was referenced in Lothar's vision, and I feel as though the temple needs to be our primary objective.

We have barely enough food to return to the area Willa is setting up a camp. Less if fighting occurs. If this ledge is wide enough, getting the supplies here may be a good idea. We could be here awhile.

Embla Strand said...

Damn. That is impressive.

I agree with Mikael - we need more food before going further.

Unknown said...

I never imagined anything like this. I thought it would be an underground lake, but...how cold is it, by the way?

I never guessed there would be a temple here.

Alexis Smolensk said...

This viewpoint is about 8 feet wide; it doesn't match Lothar's vision, if that's what you mean.

Having left Willa two days ago, she ought to have been able to return to the Throne Room, met the porters and others, and then supplied the second cache ... that cache is now 16 hours of walking from where you're standing.

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Agreed on the food. I wonder if the porters came through for us.

I expect that I'll have healed the lot of us in the interim, recovering the spells, if you guys want to make a reconnaissance run.

Engelhart Askjellson said...

We really need to get a mule down here, so we can sustain a week of delving without all these stop-gaps.

Alexis Smolensk said...

How much food do you have, just now, with Lothar, Mikael, et al, standing at the viewpoint? Is it 49 lbs, less what was given to Willa, less the 40 lbs that were needed to get you to this point (with four hours in the future already accounted for), or is it 49 lbs after those subtractions? Could you please be more specific in your time frames?

Rob Munro said...

[Willa needs 8lbs. of food to get back. Given we have 49 left, if she takes 8lbs. we have enough for 2 days without fighting, let's do this (this means she won't hide any food on the way, but that's not a problem I think).]

What a sight! The wonders of nature truly are hidden.

Should we go toward that temple? I get the feeling we'll encounter problems there; maybe one the the great mother toad children.

Unknown said...

It is 49 lbs after subtracting what we ate, but before we send X amount with Willa, so we actually have 49 - X lbs of food (I recommend X equaling 9) at this point.

Alexis Smolensk said...

The ambient temperature in the Great Cavern is chilly; the cavern has been brisk in temperature since the throne room.

Alexis Smolensk said...

Thank you Mikael. Got it.

Unknown said...

Does Mikael think that these conditions could freeze an entire lake, or does he think the frozen lake is more magical in nature?

I understand if the answer is "Mikael has no idea"

Alexis Smolensk said...

Without further, and closer, inspection, Mikael has no idea.

Rob Munro said...

[by my accounts, we have 41lbs. of food left at this point (presuming we gave 8lbs. to Willa, and after everything has bee consumed.) ]

> that cache is now 16 hours of walking from where you're standing

How much less is it if we are at 5AP?

Unknown said...

Thank you, I will keep that in mind.

As for the party, I would caution that at this time, we have exactly enough food to meet back up with Willa on full rations. Any fight or delays, and we will need to go to half rations.

I am eager to press forward as well, though. Were the porters grabbing more food?

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Let us set down whatever is weighing us down still at this point and get a closer look, shall we?

Rob Munro said...

Embla and I can carry a total of 124lbs. of supplies. Should we leave for Willa's cache and bring back what we can (it should take 3 to 4 days, leaving you time for some reconnaissance).

Unknown said...

I was thinking that, but I think it better we stick together from here on out. No telling what is down there.

Let's head down and see what the lie of the land is.

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Suits me fine. I don't want to get at loggerheads with anything down there, anyway, just take in the lay of the land, the architecture and points of access.

Oh, and call for four-hoof traction supply carriers once you meet the porters.

Alexis Smolensk said...

At 5 action points, it would take about 7 hours to return to the second cache.

Mikael, PLEASE be more careful with your descriptions. You can't "meet back up with Willa"! You have no idea where Willa is, and you made no plans to "meet" her. Please refer to it as returning to the second cache. Each time that you throw out lines like this, it makes the whole issue more complicated.

Rob, I believe we're going with Mikael's numbers. You gave 9 lbs. to Willa and you are now, right now, standing on this ledge with 40 lbs. of food in your supply.

Technically, you haven't eaten your evening's meal for the second day (though I counted it, when perhaps I shouldn't have ~ and making it more complicated myself). This means you have 50 lbs.

Can we get everyone on the same page that you have 50 lbs of food with you right now?

Unknown said...

Sorry, I'll be more careful. Got it, we are at 50 lbs., and have yet to eat the last 10 lbs we need today for full rations.

Shall we head down, then?

Rob Munro said...

[acknowledged]

Me and Embla could leave to the second cache with 8lbs. of food. leaving you with enough food for two days, with maybe a bit a rationing. We'd bring back 108lbs. of supplies.

Unknown said...

If you and Embla want to go, I can't stop you two. But Embla hasn't chimed in her opinion. And I think it is unnecessary.

Rob Munro said...

[Mikael : it is necessary as, if I remember correctly either no-one is coming to us OR Willa is coming but she wouldn't be able to carry enough to us for it to really matter. Anyway, I agree that this plan needs Embla's approval first]

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Alexis: how far, in actual fact, are we from the temple proper? Could we take a recon sweep all of us together without wasting too much time?

Alexis Smolensk said...

You could climb down to the temple in about half an hour.

Rob Munro said...

We could take an early evening meal and get there and back before "night" then?

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Seems plenty reasonable to me, what say you my fellowship?

Just a few pokes on the toad, nothing too serious.

Unknown said...

I'd like a closer look

Engelhart Askjellson said...

Well, we have a majority, let us proceed.

Lothar Svensson said...

Ok, quick recon, then I suggest we all head back to Cache 2 tomorrow and consider our full assault.

Embla Strand said...

Let's descend.

Rob Munro said...

Great. le'ts go poke at the temple then

Alexis Smolensk said...

Sorry, I had a spontaneous lunch.

The next post is up.