Chapter 4: Rematch

One week had passed since the death of the dwarf. The recruits, reminded of their mortality and emboldened by the biggest payday of their lives, steeled their resolve and invested in equipment and training.

Cahran, emboldened by the battle with the ghoul, purchased and donned the finest weapons and armor he could afford. The helmet hid his harelip nicely, which he appreciated as he trained with the local mercenaries. He looked forward to getting more wealth to spend on indulgent pleasure.

Bimhesa, inspired by the academy, took to learning anything he could about magic. His stupendous intellect helped him learn unbelievably quickly, and he returned to the party with the knowledge of magical ventriloquism. He also began to study monstrous languages.

Something dark had awoken in Taadia. Her life had been one of misery, as she did not bend her knee to the dominant faith of Cama. For years she kept her apostasy to herself, but the weight of her coinpurse sparked ambitious and bloody ideas in her mind. Inspired by the half-orc, she committed herself to the ways of stealth and assassination.

The commoners have graduated into fully fledged adventurers! Their backgrounds were entirely generated by rolls. However, it turns out that semi-leveling up the commoners mid-dungeon is against the rules. I already knew it was kinda cheesy, to be honest, but I try to keep my party alive any way I can. Anyway, gotta restock and arm the party. We need a sixth member. The retainer generator I used before only has race-as-class, so I'm not using it anymore. Rolling by hand.
Retainer list:
Human Cleric
Elf Druid
I'll try to recruit the cleric. Our front line needs a little more muscle.
Recruitment roll: refused.
I guess we're too low-brow for his taste. Bah. I'm getting a commoner. Same gear as before to save time. Upkeep is paid, to the academy!

Tempered by fortune and hardship, the party returned to the academy once again. A new face took the place of the fallen dwarf, eager to earn some coin.

"Same entrance as before. Let's go," the thief declared.

TURN 1

Urukubarr listens at the left entrance.
OSE Hear Noises: Fail.
Cahran kicks the door open. Anything inside? The room was already cleared and not much time has passed, so I'll give it a 1-in-6 chance.
Encounter roll: Nothing.
Urukubarr takes the north door and explores west, leaving his polearm behind to remain stealthy.
Encounter roll for cleared hallway: Nothing.
OSE Hear Noises: Fail.
Checking the door for a trap before going through.
Trap roll: No trap.
Room roll: A sparse classroom filled with chairs and a teacher's desk. 3 total exits.
The desk and cabinet behind it seem worthy of searching. But for now, the thief presses on.
OSE Hear Noises: Fail.

TURN 2

OSE Wandering monsters: None.
OSE Hear Noises: Fail.
I'll go back to the first door and open it.
Room roll: A modest room with a few empty cages and animal feed scattered on the floor. 1 total exit (dead end).
Time to bring the rest of the party and search the classroom. Is there anything of interest?
OPSE Yes/No (Unlikely): Yes.
Is it a key?
OPSE Yes/No (Likely): Yes, and there's more than one, jingling on a keyring.

Everyone stopped and looked when they heard a jingle. A few faint smiles formed when the grinning thief revealed a valuable discovery to the party: spinning on his finger was a full keyring.

Locked doors won't be a problem anymore! To the next area! Fighter, kick the door.
Room roll: 3 brown molds infest a dank hallway. No traps, hazards, or treasure. 3 total exits.

"It's been rather quiet so far," Cahran remarked softly. "Alright, kicking on the count of three. One..."

The party braced themselves behind him.

"Two... three!" he barked as he kicked the old door open with explosive might.

"Ach, fetid mold as far the eye can see!" Bimhesa sneered.

The air is deathly cold and there's brown shit everywhere. Is any mold in range of the party?
OPSE Yes/No (Even): No.
Alrighty, we're fucking off to the eastern entrance.

Cahran felt an icy chill in his bones. His instincts urged him to back away, and so he did. Beside him was Juho who did the same.

"We're lucky it wasn't on the door," the bard sighed in relief.

TURN 3

Like before, the thief unlocks the door and the fighter gets to kicking. Are the monsters we heard before still there?
OPSE Yes/No (Even): Yes, but there are less of them now.
Room roll: 2 giant rats scavenge a kitchen. No traps, hazards, or treasure.
Reaction roll: Friendly...?
Surprise roll: Not surprised.

The door burst open. The stink of rotting food crept out and engulfed the party. Two giant rats halted and gazed at the intruders, their beady eyes shining in the lantern light. Surprisingly, they neither attacked nor fled. One even approached the fighter cautiously, sniffing the air.

I think they used to be experimental rats, which would explain why they seem used to people. How does Cahran react?
1d6: 6.

Cahran squatted slowly and let the rat approach. It did so with no caution in its movements, sniffing the armored man for a moment, then returning to dine on a barrel of spilled scraps.

"Maybe they were test rats," the thief opined. "I saw some cages earlier that could fit 'em. Let's go in."

The party enters unhindered. Thief, time to scout.
OSE Hear Noises: Success.
Room roll: An empty hall, similar to its western counterpart.
Boring. Next room.
OSE Hear Noises: Success.
Room roll: A laboratory. No traps, hazards or treasure. 3 total exits.
I should clarify that when a roll says "No treasure", that means there is no obvious treasure. This room is worth searching.

TURN 4

OSE Wandering monsters: None.
The fighter and bard watch the most dangerous exits while the others search the lab up and down. 4 search rolls happen at the same time.
OSE Search rolls: All fail. There was nothing to find.
This dungeon is really fucking stingy. Alright, one more search is possible here.
OSE Search roll: Fail.
Bah!

"There's nothing in this damned place but mold, rats, and death!" Taadia spat under her breath. Not even the lab apparatus could be taken, as what remained was damaged beyond repair. "Has anyone found anything?"

"Nope."

"Uh-uh."

TURN 5

Let's head to the east wing. The party will go in loud.
Room roll: Another classroom. Signs of a struggle here.
Two searches possible here. Let's do it.
OSE Search rolls: All fail. There was nothing to find.
I'm bumping up the treasure odds. If I don't, this campaign will go nowhere. To the hall.
Room roll: Nothing but a hall. 3 exits.
I'll check the southern exit first. It might be a storage room.
Room roll: A storage room. 3 gems glimmer on a shelf, but a plague-ridden corpse is slumped against a wall nearby.

The thief was tense as his distance to his comrades increased. The small storage room he entered was filled with boxes, bins, and barrels. His excitement was subdued, however, as a diseased, fly-ridden corpse sat against a wall, its bloodshot eyes staring at the ceiling. More distressingly, the half-orc saw the glimmer of a few gems on the shelf above the body, just waiting to be taken.

Do I risk it? I need to use some logic here. Plagues are usually transmitted by vermin, but this shit could be magical. We are in a cleric-dominated city, so curing it shouldn't be too hard, only costly. Alright, I'll grab 'em. Is the disease contagious?
OPSE Yes/No (Even): Yes.
Urukubarr death save: Success.

Dredging up his courage, Urukubarr reached over the corpse and snatched the gems while the now-disturbed flies buzzed around him. One landed on his glove, nimbly flying away when he tried to brush it off. Anxious, the half-orc hurried out and back to the party.

And here I was thinking of a cool plot arc where Urukubarr rushes to raise enough money to cure his deadly disease. But hey, I'm glad he made the save.
Total gem value: 2050
Double nat 20! Fortune is with the party today! Urukubarr returns the gems to the party and scouts the upper exit. The party will enter the hall behind him since there's a chance he could be cut off.

"Look here, these gems are one of a kind!" the half-orc nearly sang as he returned to the second classroom.

"Yes! I want to see," Taadia exclaimed.

Spirits were lifted and praise was exchanged all around. After a moment, the thief crept back out into the hall to continue his scouting.

Room roll (with search): A wraith glides restlessly in a room adorned with framed awards. A pit trap is detected beneath a fancy but weathered rug.
The worst encounter roll possible. This chapter went from dull to nuts very quickly. Fortunately we are allowed a reaction roll.
OSE wraith reaction roll: Neutral, uncertain.
I better tread lightly.

The door silently pivoted open revealing a well-furnished office. Numerous certificates and degrees lined the walls and an ornately carved desk in the corner of the room. Following his usual standards of utmost caution, the thief treated every step into the room as though it could be his last. His diligence was rewarded when one footfall sounded slightly louder than the rest. He tapped the rug before him with his foot, and his finely trained senses warned him that there was a cavity of some kind beneath the floor right in front of him.

"I won't be going down like the dwarf did."

Satisfied, the half-orc maneuvered around the trap, looking away from the floor to check his surroundings. He froze with fear immediately, cursing his luck when a wraith materialized before him. For a moment his wits betrayed him, leaving him helpless like a lost lamb.

Does the wraith speak?
OPSE Yes/No (Even): Yes.

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Pub: 30 Aug 2022 19:55 UTC

Edit: 30 Aug 2022 20:32 UTC

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