Post by hubertbartels on Jan 8, 2023 13:42:32 GMT -5
What’s Hidden Below
Having taken a 2 hour break to catch our breath, prepare for what’s coming and counting our loot, we started down the steps behind the pantry to the basement. At the foot of the stairs, we found a long abandoned wine cellar, filled with racks of empty and broken wine bottles. There was also a corpse, about two weeks old, still clad in plate armor, lying on the floor. While Einor stripped the body of the armor, Rissa located the secret door in the southeast corner.
The door opened into a make-shift barracks for about 12 men. There was a trap door in the ceiling that led back to the garden room that we had used to enter the house. Two more doors were on the east wall and a secret passage to the caverns below was on the southwest corner. One of the east doors led to a comfortable chamber fitted as a bedroom. This was Sandballot’s(?) room from which we collected various items of interest including his spellbook. The other door to the east was marked ‘Danger’. Of course, we opened it to find skeletons inside.
While destroying these skeleton guards, another door in the room opened and a tall skeleton with a wispy beard stepped out to warn us in a raspy voice against proceeding further. It’s the skeleton of the alchemist that originally lived here. We unloaded on him and quickly put him down. Further searching of the ‘Danger’ room revealed another door. That door led to the alchemist’s laboratory. While there were many things that Revandrous(?) could use, we left most of it behind until we had cleared the rest of the place.
Back in the barracks, we opened the door in the southwest corner. That revealed a stairway with landing descending deep underground. The stairway ended in caverns leading off in different directions. One route was slippery and covered with fishing nets and mats to provide footing. Another passage was marked ‘Danger’. We decided to start exploring down a third passage. There were a few areas where the smugglers had piled trade goods and then posted guards – we took them out. Another fork in the passages was also marked ‘Danger’. Curious, we started up that passage but found only some yellow mold growing on the floor and walls. Revandrous’(?)s bonfire made short work of that danger.
Again, following another passage, we stopped at the hint of light ahead. Rissa sneaked up ahead and found a shaven-headed man in robes talking to a hobgoblin while several smugglers watched. She returned to the others and warned them. Then we charged in, overwhelmed Sandballot(?) and the hobgoblin while Einor kept the remaining smugglers busy. When they had all been defeated, we tied them up and began to question the smugglers.
Sandballot(?) told us that he took orders from someone in town, someone he did not know. The man dressed well, always bore a silver wolf-headed walking cane and was hooded. They always met on the docks, east of the fishmongers. As for the smuggling ship, Sandballot(?) knew only when the ship was coming but never met anyone of the crew.
We decide to load our prisoners into empty barrels, load the barrels onto a cart and smuggled them into town. The prisoners and barrels would be placed in the basement of Revandrous’s new house until we could figure out who to trust in Saltmarsh. We also loaded much of the alchemical material from the hidden lab onto the cart.
We spent the night at Revandrous’ house. In the morning, leaving Passim to watch over our prisoners, we went to talk to Eliander Fireborn. The tough old leader of the guard is our best choice, being a recent arrival in Saltmarsh. We asked him to come to Revandrous’ house. Once he had come, we explained everything we had discovered and warned him that someone in Saltmarsh, someone with money, was still loose. Eliander Fireborn thought for a moment before coming up with a name, Karg, who had served with him in the Keoland army. Karg is the groundskeeper at the Saltmarsh cemetary. Fireborn goes out and after a half hour, returns with his friend. We bring Karg up to date and he suggests that the prisoners be moved to the Oweland mausoleum. The mausoleum is hardly ever visited and the prisoners would be safe there until we decide what to do about them.
According to Sandballot(?), the next arrival of the smuggling ship is in two weeks. Rissa began to collect the items she needs for her role as Sandballot(?). She has his floor-length, green mariner’s coat and the Hat of Disguise.
Having taken a 2 hour break to catch our breath, prepare for what’s coming and counting our loot, we started down the steps behind the pantry to the basement. At the foot of the stairs, we found a long abandoned wine cellar, filled with racks of empty and broken wine bottles. There was also a corpse, about two weeks old, still clad in plate armor, lying on the floor. While Einor stripped the body of the armor, Rissa located the secret door in the southeast corner.
The door opened into a make-shift barracks for about 12 men. There was a trap door in the ceiling that led back to the garden room that we had used to enter the house. Two more doors were on the east wall and a secret passage to the caverns below was on the southwest corner. One of the east doors led to a comfortable chamber fitted as a bedroom. This was Sandballot’s(?) room from which we collected various items of interest including his spellbook. The other door to the east was marked ‘Danger’. Of course, we opened it to find skeletons inside.
While destroying these skeleton guards, another door in the room opened and a tall skeleton with a wispy beard stepped out to warn us in a raspy voice against proceeding further. It’s the skeleton of the alchemist that originally lived here. We unloaded on him and quickly put him down. Further searching of the ‘Danger’ room revealed another door. That door led to the alchemist’s laboratory. While there were many things that Revandrous(?) could use, we left most of it behind until we had cleared the rest of the place.
Back in the barracks, we opened the door in the southwest corner. That revealed a stairway with landing descending deep underground. The stairway ended in caverns leading off in different directions. One route was slippery and covered with fishing nets and mats to provide footing. Another passage was marked ‘Danger’. We decided to start exploring down a third passage. There were a few areas where the smugglers had piled trade goods and then posted guards – we took them out. Another fork in the passages was also marked ‘Danger’. Curious, we started up that passage but found only some yellow mold growing on the floor and walls. Revandrous’(?)s bonfire made short work of that danger.
Again, following another passage, we stopped at the hint of light ahead. Rissa sneaked up ahead and found a shaven-headed man in robes talking to a hobgoblin while several smugglers watched. She returned to the others and warned them. Then we charged in, overwhelmed Sandballot(?) and the hobgoblin while Einor kept the remaining smugglers busy. When they had all been defeated, we tied them up and began to question the smugglers.
Sandballot(?) told us that he took orders from someone in town, someone he did not know. The man dressed well, always bore a silver wolf-headed walking cane and was hooded. They always met on the docks, east of the fishmongers. As for the smuggling ship, Sandballot(?) knew only when the ship was coming but never met anyone of the crew.
We decide to load our prisoners into empty barrels, load the barrels onto a cart and smuggled them into town. The prisoners and barrels would be placed in the basement of Revandrous’s new house until we could figure out who to trust in Saltmarsh. We also loaded much of the alchemical material from the hidden lab onto the cart.
We spent the night at Revandrous’ house. In the morning, leaving Passim to watch over our prisoners, we went to talk to Eliander Fireborn. The tough old leader of the guard is our best choice, being a recent arrival in Saltmarsh. We asked him to come to Revandrous’ house. Once he had come, we explained everything we had discovered and warned him that someone in Saltmarsh, someone with money, was still loose. Eliander Fireborn thought for a moment before coming up with a name, Karg, who had served with him in the Keoland army. Karg is the groundskeeper at the Saltmarsh cemetary. Fireborn goes out and after a half hour, returns with his friend. We bring Karg up to date and he suggests that the prisoners be moved to the Oweland mausoleum. The mausoleum is hardly ever visited and the prisoners would be safe there until we decide what to do about them.
According to Sandballot(?), the next arrival of the smuggling ship is in two weeks. Rissa began to collect the items she needs for her role as Sandballot(?). She has his floor-length, green mariner’s coat and the Hat of Disguise.