Ascending Blind Claw, entering Castle Darkstone
Previous: Session 074; Next: Session 076
Start: 3rd of Venusta 1113 GE, night. Leaving Draakbarrow and heading east towards and up Blind Claw, to ascend the mountain, enter Castle Darkstone, and eliminate Morgo the Maleficent.
Bill's Bimbos organized and reallocated their magic items, and rested just outside of Draakbarrow.
On the 4th of Venusta, the group woke up and began to ascend Blind Claw. On the 3rd day (6th of Venusta, midday), they encountered a patrolling group of Draconians (10 Foot soldiers, 2 Dreadnoughts, and 1 Mastermind). All of the Draconians were killed, and they continued up. The group made it to the top of the mountain near the evening of the 6th of Venusta, and saw Castle Darkstone for the first time.
Scouting with Calliope and Nimbus, the group spotted the Draconians gathered in the central courtyards surrounded by glowing amethyst crystal chunks. Bill's Bimbos decided to enter through the long-unused sewer tunnel on the north side of the castle. Nesdin approached and stone shaped the exterior to make a path inside. The rest of the group followed invisibly - Tar Runo, Otto Ozzley, Crax Goobadink, and the league of animals were left behind) - and they entered the small sewer system of Castle Darkstone.
The infiltrators moved east, to the northeast corner, and ended up beneath the personal residence tower of Daxar Darkstone. They found a bundle of torn and discarded clothing that seemed to be imbued with that same residual purple amethyst energy seen in the crystals outside. Taking them and climbing up, they exited the toilet in the base floor of Daxar's tower. The base floor was ruined, and Aoife Sweeney ascended the stairs to scout. On the second floor, in Daxar Darkstone's bedchambers, she observed the nest: 3 Amethyst Dragon eggs surrounded by a moving, rhythmic mass of dragon bones (Dragonbone Golem) that emulated the breathing of a sleeping breathing movements of a mother dragon. Seeing this, Aoife Sweeney quickly and quietly retreated back downstairs.
The group snuck out the bottom floor door into the halls of the castle. They walked east, and made it to the enormous doors to the throne room, and the antechamber outside of it. The antechamber had even larger amethyst crystals jutting out of the ground, and seemed to react to the characters getting close. Arwa Hathspelt put on the amethyst-infused clothing they found, and the crystals no longer reacted to their approach. Everyone put on those amethyst clothes, and turned their attention to the throne room doors. They shrunk Dohwar and sent them under the door frame to scout. Dohwar reported 4 bright statues in a large, empty throne room. Dohwar seemed to become fixated on one, and the rainbow lights diffused through the crystalline figures focused on them. The gang busted into the throne room, and engaged the crystal golems to save Dohwar.
End: 6th of Venusta, evening, in the throne room of Castle Darkstone starting a fight with 4 Crystal Golems.