Barrowmaze #5: Cupboards and Statues

This may be obvious but these AARs contain spoilers for those wanting to go into the Barrowmaze.  The message is that if you're going to, don't take advantage of them.  They're called spoilers because they spoil the fun.  DON'T BE A DICK!

OK, here are the write-up of the second and third delves we had last Sunday (the first is here).  Enjoy!

Barrowmaze – 7 Apr 2019 (Second Delve)

Player	Character	Class	Notes
John	Dungeon Master
Ash	Kull	Fighter (Lvl 1)	First ‘Maze delve.
Edwin	Ginfu	Cleric (Lvl 1)	First ‘Maze delve
Jacob	Glamar	Dwarf (Lvl 3)
Laura	Petel	Druid (Lvl 1)	Hirling: Theown Smith (Lvl 0 Fighter)
Lizzie	Natalia	Acrobat (Lvl 4)	Hireling: Esme Walden (torch-bearer)
Sophie	Sorlof	Moss Dwarf (Lvl 1)

Pre-Delve

Eight days had passed since the previous delve.

Two new party members were admitted.  Kull (fighter) had picked up one of Galmar’s fliers in the Brazen Strumpet, whereas the party had been recommended to Ginfu (Cleric of King ‘Shroom) by Hendon the Miller, local leader of the underground worshipers of the Old Gods.  Ginfu took the mushroom ring by Gerran’s bivouac as a sign from ‘Shroom.

The pre-delve plan was to return to the Room of the Three Pools, to harvest a sufficient quantity of ‘water’ to further Galmar’s researches into the Chaos Potions, and then to play by ear.

The Delve

The route across the Wilderness was dryer, though the party was plagued by flies.  The journey took four hours.

The party entered the ‘Maze via the Throne Mound and then moved on to the Long Gallery.  As they were moving passed the first pile of rubble they were attacked by four giant rats. 

 As Ginfu went to examine the rat-hole, two fire beetles attacked.  These were defeated (Theown showing her mettle in both encounters), but Kull was seriously wounded.  It was decided to leave Kull in a place of safety – the ‘cupboard’ between two secret doors being decided on.  A message to him was scrawled on the wall in fire-beetle blood (should he wake up and be able to read it in the dark).

The Reward

Back at the rat-hole, Ginfu searched a badly-gnawed corpse, recovering a bloodstone.  He was all for going further into the mound and rummaging through the nest, but it was decided that the danger of collapse was too serious.  The hole was blocked up.

Here again...

The party safely crossed the Trap Room and made our way to the Pool Room.  As they entered, four mutated rats emerged from the pools.  Three were immediately killed in a hail of arrows and sling-stones, the fourth in melee.

They come as mutant too...

At this point it was realised that one of the gallon-jars was in Kull’s backpack.  The others and a mismatch of odd flasks were used to collect a gallon of each liquid. 

It was debated whether to go on or to return.  The later was decided on.  Unexpectedly, Kull was found to still be alive, and he was carried back on an uneventful return to Helix.

Post-Delve

The bloodstone was valued at 200gp and sold to Huffenpuff, the proceeds being added to group funds.

Group Funds

	Income	Expenditure
Wages		22gp, 1 sp
Gallon jars		3gp
Bloodstone	200gp

Encounters

Location	Nature	Casualties	Notes
Long Gallery	Giant Rats (x4)
Long Gallery	Fire Beetles (x2)	Kull severely wounded.
Pool Room	Mutant Rats (x4)

Treasure

	Where and how acquired	Value	Notes
Bloodstone	On corpse in rat-hole	200gp

Score: 274

Barrowmaze – 7 Apr 2019 (Third Delve)

Player	Character	Class	Notes
John	Dungeon Master
Ash	Kull	Fighter (Lvl 1)
Edwin	Ginfu	Cleric (Lvl 1)	Killed by Crab Spiders
Jacob	Glamar	Dwarf (Lvl 3)
Laura	Petel	Druid (Lvl 1)	Hireing: Theown Smith (Lvl 0 Fighter)
Lizzie	Natalia	Acrobat (Lvl 4)	Hireling: Esme Weld (torch-bearer)
Sophie	Sorlof	Moss Dwarf (Lvl 1)

Pre-Delve

Sixteen days had passed since the previous delve.

Galmar had continued his experiments with Chaos Potions.

The pre-delve plan was to go back to areas south of the Front Door explored by B’Loxi in the early days of delving.

The Delve

The journey through the Wilderness was uneventful, taking four hours.

The party entered through Five Finger Mound and the Front Door.  It proceeded to the Damp Room, which was as expected, and south through there.

Just a statue.  Obviously.

In this next room were two unexpected 7ft marble statues of women holding up the ceiling.  Experience with Living Statues, and knowing these weren’t one B’Loxi’s map, the party was cautious.  When Natalia entered the room, the statues did animate, and a hard-hitting encounter took place.  The defeated statues’ swords were looted on the off-chance.

The party carried on south, through two doors.  A bricked-up archway (not mapped by B’Loxi) was noticed, and Kull spent some time working on it with his crowbar.  It was resolved to return with better tools.

The party turned to the west and entered a room with two doors on the diagonal.  While noting that the dimensions of this room were another failing of B’Loxi’s map (his lustre was beginning to fade) we were surprised by Crab Spiders.  The party managed to make a fighting retreat out of the room.  Ginfu was to close the door behind them, but was struck down as he did so.  His cry of “To the next one!” in their ears the surviving members fled.

The exit of the ‘Maze and the return to Helix was uneventful.

Group Funds

	Income	Expenditure
Wages		22gp, 1 sp

Encounters

Location	Nature	Casualties	Notes
S of Damp Room	Living Statues? (x2)
Pointy Room	Crab Spiders (x2)	Ginfu killed

Loot

	Where and how acquired	Value	Notes
Large swords (x2)	From the Living Statues	tbd

Score: 1,114