September 2019 Recap: Of Rats and Flayers

We followed the symbol, a circle with ten spokes radiating out until we reached our destination. We recognized it as the symbol of the Xanathar guild.

Geth inspected the Beholder, but it didn’t look like anything special.

Culdock attempted to recall if he knows anything about Beholders. He remembered that they are said to be formidable when older, but not a whole lot more than that.

Geth mutters and kicks at the beholder. It moves a little way down the sewer. He moves toward the door. It was an oval, with a hoop meant to spin and sealed with a kind of material that would make a vacuum seal. It does not appear to be locked. It is at the top of a ramp in the tunnel.

Gherkin attempted to open the door. It is slimy and gross but spun relatively easy considering Gherkin’s strength. Everyone but Geth noticed a quick hiss when it opened. With Gherkin leading the way, the group found themselves in a cellar on the other side of the door, with such items as brooms, ale, and trash. The room was lit with some oil lanterns.

Geth and Kulve both noticed immediately that it smelled quite a lot better than the sewer, detecting the odor of cooking food and hearing what sounds like some kind of bar or eating establishment. Upon noticing the smell of the sewer following us in, the party closed the door. There wasn’t really anyone in the cellar, and Renear agreed that it was time to get up into the bar, which more closely resembled the Skewered Dragon than the Yawning Portal. The few patrons around cursed our presence, noting that we smelled like we came out of a sewer. Renear, not one to wait around, marched up to the bar and bought an ale for the house. Talking amongst ourselves, Renear announced that we were in the Dock Ward at a bar called the Spouting Fish. Looking around, we found a way to wash up and head out to look for signs of the Xanathar guild. As we left the establishment, we walked west upon not seeing any. We came to Ship lane, where we saw one city watchman leaning against a lamppost.

Geth and Gherkin noticed, that across the street, past the shoulder of the city watchman, was a circle with ten spokes and an arrow pointing to the north. We followed the arrow, which led us to an unnamed intersection and a Xanathar symbol to our left. We followed once more, and further along observe the same symbol on the cellar door of the outside of a building, observing that it was another door to the sewer. We opened the sewer door, and entered the sewer. Although it led down, it was not nearly as steep as when the sewer went up into the bar. We saw a corridor that, which dank, is not nearly as filthy as the one we had been in before.

Culdock cast his Light cantrip on Geth’s scimitar. After walking down the first corridor, they came to a circular hub that has two arrow slits in line with each other. North and south of the hub lay more corridors and to the west lay a stone door set onto a stone ledge. Geth, walking toward the door, felt an arrow whiz past him from out of the slit. Issuing a warning, Geth followed Gherkin, who ran down the corner in an effort to find the mystery archer. Renear followed, asking Culdock what had happened, and Culdock told him to watch out for arrows, because they can hurt. Kulve walked to the arrow slit and cast Color Spray into it, and looking to see if there was anything in the chamber beyond, was only able to see that a creature was in there and that it had two eyes.

Gherkin moved further down the corridor, and saw a hall to his right. He moved just into it. Geth followed, taking a minute to peer down the corridor. There appeared to be a door at the end of it nearly identical to the one that led down into this section of the sewer. Renear walked past the arrow slit, shoved his sword into it and yelled something like “DIE, YOU FOUL CREATURES” and walked toward the door. Lauris followed. Kulve went over to the door to the west of the hub, and looking at the door, cast Blade Ward on himself. Gherkin marched down the hallway that branched off the main corridor and found himself in a room where he comes across a giant rat, which reared up and snarled at him. Gherkin, charming as ever, snarled back. Geth charged in behind him and swung his scimitar at the giant rat, striking it with his scimitar. Culdock advanced through the corridor to follow the group, and Renear opened the door to the west of the hub, saying something like “this must be the place.”

Kulve walked toward Geth and Gherkin to tell them of the discovery, and found them in a fight with the largest rat he’d ever seen. He cast Chill Touch on the rat, hitting it. Gherkin swung at the rat but missed. Kulve stood his ground when the rat tried to move past him in the corridor, and the rat tried to attack him but missed. Renear wondered aloud where everyone was, and walked toward everyone. Kulve used Shocking Grasp on the rat, and Gherkin took a swing at the rat, dealing some good damage. Geth took a hard look at the rat. Renear leaned into the hallway and asked everyone what they’re doing. Lauris does the same. Grant swings at the rat but misses. The rat bit Kulve for one damage! Renear began to taunt us. Kulve struck the rat with a dagger and the rat crumpled into a heap, and was observed to turn into a halfling. We headed back into the hallway, where Geth cast Goodberry and handed two of them out to the party. Gherkin and Renear pass on them, and Lauris stress-eats one immediately.

The hallway led to another closed door. Upon opening the door, the party observed rusty weaponry and ragged clothing littering the floor, perhaps having once served as an armory. Moving down the hallway past this room, the party found a medium sized room with arrow slits all along the perimeter. Gherkin, with his military training, surmised that either there is a room exactly like this where the arrow shot at Geth, or that whoever shot the arrow has either been dispatched or was no longer there.

The party moved along the hallway, to another room with six tattered straw-stuffed mattresses and nothing of value. Culdock and Geth hear some rustling on the other side of the door, like the sound of furniture being moved. Culdock busted down the door and headed into the next room. In it were two humans among busted-up furniture, piling things up against the other door. We recognized one – Krantz – from the brawl at the Yawning Portal.

Kulve fired his sling at Krantz but missed. Renear charged one but missed. Culdock slammed one with his Warhammer. Lauris shot Krentz with his short bow. The other one attempted to strike Culdock but missed. Gherkin crit Krantz for huge damage, Geth attempted to drag the other one with Thorn Whip but missed. Krantz attempted to hit Gherkin but failed. Kulve cast Chill Touch on Krantz but missed. Culdock swung his Warhammer mightily at the other enemy and struck him. Lauris shot an arrow at the same enemy but missed. The same enemy that Culdock struck swung at Culdock but missed. Renear swung at an enemy but missed. Culdock swung at the enemy but missed. The enemy swung back at Culdock but missed. Gherkin swung at Krantz but missed. Krantz crit Gherkin! Kulve fired his sling at Krantz, but missed. Kulve fired his sling again and hit! Renear swung at the other enemy but missed. Culdock swung at the same enemy he’d been hammering away at and hit him, the enemy falling and not getting back up. Lauris shot Krantz with his short bow. Gherkin slammed Krantz with his sword and Krantz crumpled in a heap on the floor.

Krantz has leather armor and a longsword, and his compatriot has a shortsword and leather armor. Neither has any treasure. The room is a sleeping room, and has a door to the south and a door to the north. Krantz and his compatriot were barricading the room to the north. We removed the barricade and Gherkin opened the door. Inside was a pool of oil on the floor. Gherkin did not really learn anything else upon further investigation from the doorway, so we closed the door back up and barricaded it again. Lauris led the way down the hallway from the south door, and Geth followed. As Gherkin entered the hallway, Lauris noticed that the hall passes under the entrance hallway and then up a stairway.

When we entered the room, we saw threadbare curtains lining a long wall, and a muscular half-orc in dingy red robes and whose fist is engulfed in flame, and whose foot was on the chest of a human with red hair who was squirming around on the floor. Across the room in a black robe was a nightmarish figure with tentacles encircling his face, and who appeared to be stroking a disembodied brain with legs.

The half-orc turned and looks down at us. A beam of light flashed down and struck Kulve square in the chest. He released Floon, who got out of the way. Lauris shot the half-orc with his short bow. Kulve cast Sleep on the half-orc but it put Floon to sleep. Gherkin struck the half-orc with his longsword. Renear moved toward the mind flayer. Geth’s Thorn Whip missed the half-orc, and Culdock delivered the killing blow with his Warhammer.

When the half-orc died, the mind flayer in the back leans over and sets a legged brain on the floor and it begins to levitate upward. In its other hand, the Mind Flayer is holding what appears to be a beholder’s eyestalk carved out of stone.

It moves incredibly fast toward Gherkin and attacks him, missing with its claws. Lauris moves towards the mind flayer, missing with his short bow. The mind flayer moves to the west, still levitating. Culdock struck the intellect devourer with his Warhammer. Gherkin mashed his longsword into the intellect devourer. Renear jumped on the dais and swung at the mind flayer, missing. Geth raised his scimitar and swung at the intellect devourer, missing. The intellect devourer struck Gherkin for heavy damage. Lauris shot the Intellect Devourer with his bow. Kulve attacked the Intellect Devourer with Chill Touch and missed. Lauris successfully made a Will save against the Mind Flayer. Culdock smashed the Intellect Devourer into sweet oblivion with his Warhammer. Gherkin slashed the Mind Flayer with his longsword and used his bonus action for a Second Wind. Gherkin was certain he hit the Mind Flayer but there was no discernible damage. Renear struck the Mind Flayer with his shortsword and only some damage occurred. Lauris missed with his short bow. Kulve missed the Mind Flayer with Chill Touch. Reaner missed his attack of opportunity when the Mind Flayer moved to the west, but Gherkin did not, connecting with his longsword. Kulve missed his attack of opportunity with his sling. Geth connected with his Thorn Whip and pulled the Mind Flayer to between himself, Floon and Lauris.

Culdock moves into the room the Mind Flayer was attempting to flee into. In the center of the room is a column with a circle with ten spokes in it, with a smaller indentation carved into it in what appears to be the form of an eye.

After another combat round, it appears that the Mind Flayer is simply not taking damage. It makes it to the pedestal and pushes the stone eyestalk into it. A doorway opens to the south of the pedestal and the mind flayer disappears.