Third Expedition

[caveman]

Indeed Milner was a bit confused last time and cant read his map but he draws his sword and descends.
"i suggest throwing a lot of flaming oil. That worked well last time. "

[Dumnbunny]

Jedak and Loden heft their weapons and follow close behind Milner ... well, as close as possible without tripping crowding the others too much. Dugar draws and loosely knocks an arrow, hanging out towards the back of the pack. Sigur draws his dagger, glances at Milner's sword, and sticks close to Dugar.

[Raven Crowking]

The stairs lead downward into a cool and noisome space, some 60 feet across -- the interior of the barrow. The high ceiling is held aloft by four stout pillars. In the centre of the area, part of the floor has been broken into a hole. Over this hole is a sort of metal tripod, clearly designed to hold a rope for climbing into the hole and (possibly) hauling things up....there is actually a rope attached to the tripod, descending into the depths!

Bones, bits of old skull, and bits of stone litter the floor around the edges of the room. Around the hole itself, the tracks of booted feet are clearly visible.

[beermotor]

Grim and Pikar lean over the hole and peer down, seeing how far the torchlight goes.

[Raven Crowking]

The hole opens into a large space....so large it is deeper than your torchlight can show. The rope snakes down into the darkness.

[beermotor]

"Hey, tough guy," says Daryll, jerking his chin at Milner. "What's on the other end of that rope?"

Grim looks up and says, "Can't see the bottom. Long way down."

[bitflipr]

Did the stairs take us below ground, and is there only one entrance/exit into this room?

Murq will kick a bone down the hole and wait for it to hit the ground, timing the descent to estimate its depth.

[Raven Crowking]

Did the stairs take us below ground, and is there only one entrance/exit into this room?

Yes, but not deeply. You are within a large barrow mound.

Murq will kick a bone down the hole and wait for it to hit the ground, timing the descent to estimate its depth.

He estimates the distance at 35-40 feet.

[bitflipr]

I don't think any of my characters would dare go into the darkness without seeing what's below.

Morgan drops his torch down the hole, hoping that it'll stay lit when it hits the ground.

[Raven Crowking]

The torch drops 35 feet to the floor below. You catch a glimpse of a partially collapsed room with worn frescos on the walls, and debris upon the floor, before the torch lands and goes out. You are pretty sure that you saw a dark archway to the east.

[bitflipr]

I'm guessing we still have light in the room from Pikar's torch - assuming Pikar holds the light over the hole my characters will proceed. I'll give some time for people here to catch up. Once ready...

Leopold will climb down the rope. Once he gets to the bottom he'll pick up the torch and hand it back to Morgan who will follow.

Morgan says "I'll need this lit again."

Murq and Turq will climb down as well. Before they do, they'll work together at tying the securing the chest to the end of the rope and lowering it down.

[Raven Crowking]

Across far distance planes, Luka the Lovely spins her wheel, and grants Leopold +1 Luck for going first.

Beyond the hole is the vaulted ceiling of a lower room, perhaps 30 feet to a side. The hole enters this room from some 35 feet above the floor. The walls are decorated with worn frescos of some form of procession. Bones and rubble lie scattered across the floor, admixed with the prints of booted feet, heading to the east. The western wall has partially collapsed, but even from relatively high up, an archway is visible to the east, closest to the southern wall. It seems that this is the way the booted men (?) went.

All is silent. The room smells of damp earth and decay.

[bitflipr]

So the wall the west is collapsed to the point that there is some sort of hole/exit there? Also, is that +1 luck to my maximum?

My characters will wait for all others to join them.

[Dumnbunny]

Jedak takes his and Loden's weapons -- pitchfork and shovel -- pulls up the rope, ties it around the head of each weapon and lowers the rope down. Then he climbs down after them, followed by Loden. Sigur sheathes his dagger and follows after them, drawing his dagger again when he reaches the bottom. Dugar's next, re-knocking and arrow when his feet find firm ground.

[beermotor]

Grim and Pikar follow, and will light others' torches as necessary. Cisneros follows, then Daryll brings up the rear.

[Raven Crowking]

So the wall the west is collapsed to the point that there is some sort of hole/exit there? Also, is that +1 luck to my maximum?

No; the west wall is collapsed to the point that there is an irregularity in the room, and damp earth can be seen beyond jumbled stones.

Yes; your Luck goes up by 1. Consider it a bonus for taking action. Gods and Powers watch what you do, and can modify your Luck for weal or woe.

[beermotor]

Cisneros will attempt to examine the frescoes insofar as he can make them out. Maybe there's some writing?

Grim and Pikar will go to the archway and peer through cautiously.

Daryll will search a few piles of bones.

[Dumnbunny]

Loden takes his shovel and sees if he can't dig a bit into the wet earth made visible by the west wall collapse, while Jedak sees if he can't move some of the debris to see what's under it. Meanwhile, Sigur and Dugar join the others at the archway; "See anything?"

[Raven Crowking]

Cisneros will attempt to examine the frescoes insofar as he can make them out. Maybe there's some writing?

The frescos seem to be funerary in nature; they show a long procession of dark-clad mourners, led by priests of dark Nergal, who was said to be waylaid and destroyed by his sons, Set and Orcus, long ages ago. The mourners are carrying the bodies of the dead to a burial mound.

Someone has carved letters into the soft fresco-work: "Beware the tentacle beast. It ate Galstaff." The carving seems fresh.

Grim and Pikar will go to the archway and peer through cautiously.

The passage goes east a mere 10 feet, then there is a passage to the north. Immediately after that, you can see a door to the south. It appears as though there is another passage north beyond that, but you cannot be certain.

Daryll will search a few piles of bones.

They are old and mouldering for the most part. Some seem to show signs of having been burned.

[Raven Crowking]

Loden takes his shovel and sees if he can't dig a bit into the wet earth made visible by the west wall collapse, while Jedak sees if he can't move some of the debris to see what's under it. Meanwhile, Sigur and Dugar join the others at the archway; "See anything?"

It is certainly possible to dig into the damp, peaty earth of the moorland, and to shift some of the rubble. Doing so uncovers more rotting bits of fresco, of much the same nature as that which is still revealed. The land must have been used for burials long before the Barrowmaze was created, for there are bits of bone in the walls themselves. The area seems to be stable enough to shift a fair amount of rubble without triggering a collapse, but it would be inadvisable to dig into the damp earth too far -- bits of peat and earth tend to fall wherever earth is removed.