Adventurers
- Elixabete (Thief 3)
- Firstleaf (Elf 1)
- Khadgar (Magic User 1)
- NPCs: Berros (F), Itzaina (F), Mendoria (MU)
While several of their party recuperated from their (forunately mild) injuries, Firstleaf spent a few days exploring the nearby area and documenting the rough layout, noting a few interesting features which stood out and emphasing to his companions that scale was merely a trap for human bean counters.
Calculating six to be a good number for efficient dungeon delving, the party left a few retainers to spend their earnings in the tavern and made their way to the gatehouse again. As they passed through the red-bricked cellar complex, they came across the halfling Dingbury who mentioned that he’d released an adventurer from the wererat’s prison cells and spied a woman wandering the corridors. The adventurers made a note to look out for both going forward.
They then made their way to the open room housing the griffon nest, hoping to grab some of the shiny items they’d spotted. The adult was still nearby, however, and immediately flew towards the balcony when the party burst through the door. The quickly retreated back into the stone corridor, but the griffon chased them inside.
Mendoria tried to lull the avian creature into a magical slumber but it seemed utterly unaffected by her spell, and it barrelled into the front rank. The adventurers struggled to pierce its defences, and found their own to be little use against its claws and beak. Khadgar tried flinging into the monster’s mouth one of the mushrooms he’d picked from the large chamber on the off-chance it might do something, but again the griffon was unhampered and it swiped Berros’ head from his shoulders with an easy slice of its claw.
It just so happened that Berros was carrying the warhammer the party had recovered on their last delve, and again the spectral version of its fallen bearer rose up and attacked the killer. This spectre of Berros immediately turned the tide of the fight - unable to cause this new opponent any damage, the griffon fled back down the corridor but was cut down before it could reach the balcony.
With the adult dead, the adventurers could pilfer the nest at their leisure, unearthing gold, jewellery and several magical items. They looked over the balcony to try and judge their position, and noticed a winch a little way down leading to a crude dock on the river way below, by a waterfall emerging from the cliff. A sign of further depths to this place.
They left Berros’ body by the balcony and went to explore the rooms they’d cleared of the Gecko Clan but found them occupied by the hairy ones of the Tiger Beetle Clan, merrily working their way through a discovered stash of alcohol. They happily welcomed the adventurers into their midst to try their luck with the bottles, Firstleaf enjoying some fine elvish wine while Elixabete’s eyeballs (figuratively) exploded and showered her with sparks after trying some potent hairy moonshine.
The clan leader presented them with some gold and beetle pendants, declaring them honorary members of the clan. He drunkenly responded to their questions about the rest of this floor, detailing a few of their denizen neighbours and pointing out the way down to the ogre lair.
Returning to the balcony, the party found that the two young griffons had gorged themselves on Berros’ corpse. Awkwardly they lugged the pair back to the surface with visions of trained flying mounts and made their down the mountainside to the village again.