After more than a week of rest and relaxation on the Naked Isle (4/25 – 5/2), the party was ready to head back to Hestrin Island. Silverfish asked them questions about what they’d seen and together they concluded the island must be the lost tomb of Hestrin, a wealthy merchant who was unliked by most and trusting of none. It made sense that he’d leave protection of this final resting place to an army of automatons.
Zhargrave, now flush with funds for his temple, was happy to see the foundation take shape. Ollie tried persuading the experienced cleric to come with them on the next voyage, but he declined. His project of building a temple and converting the elves of Naked Isle to the true religion was all-consuming. Additionally, he’d nearly died in the battle with the lich, something he did not care to chance again. Ollie’s attempt to shame him for not chasing after the undead did not endear the greedy dwarf to the old cleric. However, he did suggest his protege go with them.
Elona was one of his first converts, a lovely elf lass now wearing scale mail and ready to spread the good word of the Anointed One. Formerly, she’d provided funeral services to the community, which offered some continuity with the duties of her new role. She promised to report back to Zhargrave about any significant undead encountered.
Urgesh accepted Elona to the “tribe” of Tienarth’s Raiders, taking an interest in her protection, as she was still quite inexperienced and vulnerable to the extreme dangers the typically faced. Looking at Tienarth, she remarked on his advanced age, which provided a clue as to how young she was even for an elf. He made no particular point about it, but Urgesh was discouraged to find this particular elf covered up in clothes and armor, unlike most of the elves on Naked Isle.
Sailing for Hestrin Island
They set off the next day (5/3), heading south, as judged by the position of the sun. Previously, the journey required but three days, but the whims of the great ocean are incomprehensible to mortals. Unlike travel down ancient roads, perhaps aided by maps, sailing was always a gamble. It required placing more than a little faith. To this end, Elona cheered the crew with her frequently declarations that fate would unfold as it was meant to be.
The crew that disembarked included Ollie, Urgesh, Elona, Tienarth, Hocuspo, Ferris and Nate. Aderian offered his regrets, but was caught up in some village business that he did not further describe. With them went Felon and Brond, two dwarves rescued from slavery, and two adventurous elves, Karerei and Hata.
On the second day (5/4), an orca was seen breaching the waves, and Urgesh pulled a huge Gag Grouper from the depths, a prize of which he was duly proud. Two days later (5/6), a storm drove them back in an northerly direction. They could only run with the gales and then turn south again the next day. Unfortunately, the winds soon gave out, proving the perverse plans of the sea gods, yet a large island was seen nearby. They all labored to row their caravel, The Garlic Frog, into a wide harbor.
As they tied the ship to the wharf, an elf approached to greet them. He asked if they came to trade, and informed them that they would not be welcome to come ashore. The bustling village produced cocoa and cotton using indentured dwarven labor. It was clear that dwarves were chattel on the island or Tuiria, or at least in the village of Sirivale. Ollie did his best to hold his tongue, though the thought of dwarves in bondage angered him.
Tienarth, recognized as their leader mostly for being a senior elf, negotiated a trade of goods, for on the ship they still carried barrels of sugar. They traded away 11 tons of sugar for 5 tons of cocoa, 5 tons of cotton and one dwarf slave, this last at Ollie’s insistence. She was Mulinsa and did not show a particular gratitude for leaving the island. Ollie declared her free with the stated obligation that she must “earn her keep”. She remarked that her station in life had changed little. It was the kind of dour response from a dwarf that anyone would expect.
A strong breeze propelled them along the next day (5/8), with the most notable event being Urgesh catching four Planehead Filefish. The next day another island was seen, but they continued onward, not wishing to be further delayed. After the next dawn, Urgesh spied a carrack flying a white flag emblazoned with an orange flame. The two ships avoided each other, and by the next day (5/11), they found themselves at Hestrin Island.
Fighting Golems in the Tomb
The longboat was rowed to shore. They climbed over the hill to enter the inner valley once more, avoided all statues and going straight for the trap door into the tomb. It was all as they left it, undisturbed. They paused for a time in the room where they fought the two golem guards who wore cloaks. Nate tried scraping some of the black mold way from the mural with a pole. Urgesh used his hands which were irritated afterwards. The additional parts of the mural revealed did not add much to the overall scene. As seen before, there were various mourners obviously lamenting as a four huge golems carried a black coffin.
They moved quickly back to the last room explored, where stone benches surrounded a pedestal that once bore the likeness of an armored knight. Based on the description relayed to Zhargrave, they now knew it to be Saint Zimi. His statue remained in pieces on the floor.
A door to the south opened to a hallway and another door. It was checked for traps, and then Ollie flung it open before charging inside. Two horrors of reanimated flesh, muscles bulging beneath skin stitched together with crude sutures. Nate followed with the intent of providing his protection from evil to his allies. Urgesh stepped up beside Ollie and was struck from behind by the other golem. Not long after, Ferris slipped into the room and attacked a golem from behind. It twisted around and landed a vicious blow to the wily rogue.
The golems were covered in ornate armor encrusted with jewels and jewelry. Diamonds were dislodged as blows rained down on the monsters, and when the first golem fell, jewelry scatters across the floor. Just as the second golem was about to fall, a secret door slid open to reveal an even deadlier foe. Covered in jeweled armor like the others, this golem as taller and more substantial. It was no flesh golem, but instead the dread iron golem. Urgesh and Ollie rushed up to face it, enduring a blast of poisonous gas. Neither dropped dead, a result for which Nate and Elona could not help but give credit to the Anointed One.
Tienarth stepped into the room and landed a lightning bolt into the face of the iron guardian, slowing it. The surge of luck continued, as power with magical speed, both Urgesh and Ollie delivered devastating blows. The golem broke apart and was silent.
The party then faced a familiar challenge. Urgesh had fallen under the influence of an intense rage, one that threatened to direct his power against his very friends. Nate wrapped his arms around the half-orc barbarian and squeezed. Presently, Urgesh came to his senses and calmed down.
Despite the extreme danger, they’d defeated the golems without any serious injury. Urgesh and Ollie had suffered a few blows, but they were still standing. There was some doubt about going further, but Urgesh urged them to press on as he sensed the final chamber was close. Ollie accepted this idea and moved down a narrow hallway only to fall through an illusionary floor where he was stuck with three iron spikes. A rope helped him out of the pit, which was as large as the 10×10 room.
In order to satisfy some curiosity, Tienarth transformed into a small sparrow and fluttered over the pit and down a short hallway where he stopped short. He looked into a circular room with curved benches surrounding a black column. The walls were decorated with murals interspersed with blackened tapestries. The hallway continued on the other side.
Back in the room where they fought the three golems, they gathered all of the scattered jewels and jewelry. It was all of very fine quality, with gems of all types. The metals were mostly platinum. These were all gathered into Ollie’s magical backpack. When that task was complete, they returned to the ship and began the voyage back to the Naked Isle. Fortunately, that trip required only three days (5/12 – 5/14). Terrible monsters of the sea were seen, but the monsters were fighting each other and the ship was able to stay at a safe distance.
Returning with Loot
Ollie could not resist making an accounting of the treasure recovered, and he estimated the total value to be 100,206 gp. There were 268 pieces in all. Those worth at least 1,000 gp were as follows.
Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Blue Diamond (2500 gp), Medal (1600 gp), Belt (1500 gp), Bracelet (1500 gp), Belt (1400 gp), Brooch (1400 gp), Choker (1400 gp), Locket (1400 gp), Belt (1300 gp), Belt (1300 gp), Bracelet (1300 gp), Chain (1300 gp), Clasp (1300 gp), Bracelet (1200 gp), Buckle (1200 gp), Clasp (1200 gp), Necklace (1200 gp), Pin (1200 gp), Chain (1100 gp), Choker (1100 gp), Topaz (1000 gp), Aventurine (1000 gp), Fire Opal (1000 gp), Fluorospar (1000 gp), Diamond (1000 gp), Diamond (1000 gp), Aventurine (1000 gp), Topaz (1000 gp), Aventurine (1000 gp), Diamond (1000 gp), Diamond (1000 gp), Malachite (1000 gp), Malachite (1000 gp), Fire Opal (1000 gp), Buckle (1000 gp), Circlet (1000 gp), Locket (1000 gp)
End Notes
- Days
- 4/25 – 5/2 Downtime on Naked Isle
- 5/3 – 5/14 Sailing to Hestrin Island and back
- Treasure: 100,206 gp
- Jewels and jewelry removed from three golems
- Combat: 6,340 xp
- 2 Flesh Golems 1,225 xp each
- Iron Golem 3,890 xp
- Characters 1,057 xp each (6 shares)
- Elona (npc) 529 xp
- Ferris (human, dexterity, from behind) 1,184 xp
- Hocuspo (npc) 529 xp
- Nate (human, protect, fight) 1,184 xp
- Ollie (stubborn, underground, fight, lead, in front) 1,110 xp
- Tienarth (patient, avoid combat) 1,078 xp
- Urgesh (half-human, action-oriented, fight, rage) 1,142 xp
- Ships
- The Garlic Frog (Caravel)
- Crew/Passengers: 5/ 7
- Hit Points: 68/75
- Cargo: 53 of 75 tons
- Food: 22 man/weeks
- Water: 5000 gallons
- 22 tons of sugar, 5 tons of cocoa, 5 tons of cotton
- The Garlic Frog (Caravel)